


A New Meaning

by harmony88



Series: Forever With You: Part 2 [1]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Action/Adventure, BAMF Rose Tyler, F/M, Follows my series "Forever With You", Post-Episode AU: s02e13 Doomsday, Romance, Sequel, Sexual Content, Telepathic Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:35:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 21,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28805157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harmony88/pseuds/harmony88
Summary: COMPLETEA few months after they got their forever, the Doctor and Rose are still processing it all. He decides to finally take her to Barcelona, and they end up having an unexpected problem to solve that tests their happy bubble.“Allons-y, Rose Tyler,” he said, and with a flourish they pushed the door open, and a world of color and majesty awaited them.“Barcelona,” he told her. “Bout time, I reckon.”“Really?!” she asked, smiling at him and bouncing a little on her heels. He hummed happily, and she pulled him behind her as she ran to the main part of the planet, and he looked up at the sky.***First story in my sequel series to "Forever With You". HIGHLY recommend reading that one first, I don't spend a lot of time recapping in this and there are lots of references to past stories. ***
Relationships: Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler
Series: Forever With You: Part 2 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2111892
Comments: 10
Kudos: 136





	1. I Love Him, and He Loves Me

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, friends!! I have an entire crazy timeline brewing in my head again. What can I say...I'm obsessed with these two in this universe. This story is ALMOST done, once it is I'll update everything, but here's a little taste :)

Forever. 

It had always been one of her favorite words. It was a promise, a vow, a declaration, and a dream. It was the only word she could think of saying when he asked her that question all those years ago, standing on Lavatar in her black jacket with the furry hood. 

_How long are you going to stay with me?_

The first time she associated that word with the Doctor surprised her. She knew loved him, she knew she wanted to stay with him and she knew she needed him, but the first time she realized he needed _her_ that word etched itself to her heart and never let go. When he dropped that space gun and held onto her like she gave him the air from her lungs. 

Utah, 2012. 

She smiled at that memory now as she held him, asleep in her arms with his hair tousled and tangled. Both of them naked from love making they had done hours ago, and both still trying to process that _forever_ now had an entirely new meaning. 

She made her choice a long time ago, and she kept her promise. 

He promised he wouldn’t leave her behind, and he kept his. 

Promises and destiny, it turns out, are close friends. 

She still felt like herself, despite the passive Artron Energy that now coursed through her bloodstream. Despite her Instincts, despite three bonds, despite the Vortex in her mind she had been harnessing and adapting to for the last year and a half, despite the Huon cells that gifted her two regenerations and a Time Lord lifespan, she felt, for the most part, like she always had. Pink and yellow (and maybe a little gold). Her temperature was still warmer than his, her single heart still beat at the rate it always had. 

He calls her his impossible human, and she’s starting to think he’s right. 

He stirred a little as her hand ran through his hair, and she kissed his forehead as her mind continued to swirl in thoughts. It still felt so incredibly unbelievable, even though she was the one who had stayed grounded since they met that first projection. She was the one who kept reminding him that forever was possible, and yet she was the one who seemed to have to pinch herself every morning when she woke up just to make sure it wasn’t a dream. 

She bit her lip and let her tongue find the corner of her mouth. She knew that wasn’t entirely true. He was definitely still processing it all as well. In these months since their anniversary when they met those final projections, there had been so much joy. There have also been moments where he just stares at her and she can tell he is taking her in, still trying to figure out how any of this is possible. 

He watched her sleep for the first few nights out of fear something would go wrong with the Huon cells and she would have some sort of reaction. He only stopped after she told him he could scan her every night before bed instead, and when he realized how silly that sounded he had smirked at her and rolled his eyes. 

_Fair enough,_ he had said. 

Adventures, since that day, had been _thrilling._ There was an intense level of giddiness in both of them, and the Doctor’s boisterous self was often the one taking charge. They led with love. They worked as a perfect team, oftentimes thinking the same thing at the same time, as their hearts, minds, and souls were one. The Vortex energy and her Instincts still guided them, and she was growing stronger with his language and he was still teaching her how to pilot the TARDIS. 

He believed in her so much it took his breath away. 

Inevitably, however, because the universe just can’t seem to help but test the whole “Rose Tyler can regenerate” theory and give her husband a panic attack, there had been a couple of close calls. 

The first was about three weeks after she got her regenerations and they were in some government building in Wales investigating a distress signal, when a pipe burst and shot her out of a fifth story window. He freaked out, but she managed to use her energy to soften the landing and only had a couple broken bones, which she healed quickly and they solved the mystery - there had been nanophenes, a distant cousin of nanogenes blocking the water supply, and the pressure caused the entire thing to explode. 

They did a lot of swimming that day. 

The last time was about a month ago, when she was bit by something called a Purin; a highly toxic boar-like creature that roamed the planet Ture. She was able to use her Vortex energy to heal herself again, but he still begged her to let him check her out in the medbay when they returned to the TARDIS, where he proceeded to run every test he could. He told her he was making sure she still had her regenerations “just in case”, and she felt her stomach fill with butterflies. 

He was rather cute when he worried about her. 

They have had many long conversations about it all. Some have been quite fun, letting themselves get carried away in what life will be like in a hundred years. Others have been more thoughtful, talking about why his family did this for them in the first place. She knows he knows, but she also knows his wounds from the Time War won’t heal overnight, and he was doing his best. Some days are better than others. 

More than anything, though, they are truly, unequivocally, _happy. _And, as an added bonus, their mind bond had grown stronger which meant their sex life had been... amplified. She bit down on her lip at that thought just as his breath touched her skin.__

__She could tell he was waking up, and he pressed his lips to her bare chest, breaking her train of thought as he started to grind his body closer to hers. She looked at him, but his eyes were still closed as he began to lap his tongue against her skin slowly, still half asleep, and she let out a small, quiet cry, finding herself gripping the bedframe with the hand not looped in his hair as he brushed his hand on her stomach._ _

__She forgot what she had been thinking about entirely._ _

__“Hi,” he said. His voice was low and sleepy, and it made her squirm. He smiled against her skin and continued to devote his attention to her breasts, and she whimpered a little. “Is this okay?”_ _

__“Yes,” she said breathlessly. Their insatiable need for each other did not go away at all after they got their forever, either, if anything, it spurred him on even more._ _

__“Good,” he whispered, and moved his lips up to her collarbone. “What were you thinking so hard about?”_ _

__She bit her lip. His voice was like butter and it was driving her absolutely mad, and she just gasped as he moved his body so it covered more of her, his knee pushing her thighs open so he could support himself. “What gave me away?” she asked. He just kissed her skin and began to rub circles on her hips._ _

__“Woke me up,” he said. “The hum in my head.”_ _

__“I’m sorry,” she whispered, but he just shook his head._ _

__“Rose,” he groaned, and his lips moved to her jaw. “I liked it.”_ _

__“I can tell,” she said with a breathless laugh. He just pressed his body onto hers, letting her feel _just_ how much he did. _ _

__She did things to him he can’t possibly explain. He craved her before, of course, but even his big Time Lord brain couldn’t think of a word to describe how much he…_ _

__He groaned against her skin and caught her lips in a kiss as their minds connected fully, and she gripped him closer to her as his body slid into hers, and he began to move at a tantalizing slow pace._ _

__He knew what he was doing._ _

__“Were they good thoughts?” the Doctor asked, starting to pant a little. She moaned and bit her lip._ _

__“They were of you,” she said, and he smiled at her, moving his body with hers slightly faster and kissing her neck. “So yes.”_ _

__“Were they now?” he whispered, and he moved his lips to hers as she wrapped her legs around him. “Do you wanna show me?”_ _

__“It was...mmm...Just...ah...everything,” she said, and he nodded._ _

__“Will you show me?” he asked her. “Please?” The desire in his voice made her catch her breath in her throat, and he started to whimper. “Please, Rose…”_ _

__Their movements synced up and she sent him the memories she had indulged in, and he groaned and nipped her skin. They allowed themselves to swim in sensations and he chanted her name for a moment as a surge of desire dripped through both of them, and everything began to move in slow motion. She screamed, he moaned loudly at the sound and watched her, and it wasn’t long before they were unable to say anything and let their minds and bodies do the talking._ _

__It only lasted a few minutes, both had wanted each other more than they realized, and he rolled to his side as they shifted positions so she was leaning on his chest, and they both smiled._ _

__“I quite enjoy being spurred awake by your mind,” he told her, and she felt her heart skip a beat._ _

__“I’ll remember that,” she said, and snuggled closer to him. A moment passed, but nothing at all weighed them down, and she smiled. “I love you.”_ _

__“Love you,” he murmured._ _

__They just lied there, arms draped around each other, and Rose eventually sat up and pulled his journal from his childhood out from her bedside table’s drawer and flipped to the back, where there were many blank pages. He watched as she grabbed a pen, and she looked at him carefully. “Do you mind?”_ _

__“No,” he said, but his hearts were beating on his ribs at the thought of her words coupling with his. She smiled at him and began to write, and he sat up and peered over her shoulder, rubbing her arm.__

____

____

_For the first nineteen years of my life, nothing happened. Nothing at all. Not Ever. And then I met a man called the Doctor. A man who could change his face…_ She glanced at him as she wrote those words and he smirked at her. _He took me away from home in his magical time machine. He showed me the whole of time and space. I love him and he loves me._

__He smiled at her and leaned back, letting her write. He watched her, noticing her tongue darting to the corner of her mouth, the way she rubbed her lips together when she was thinking, and she kept her blocks up, wanting it to be a surprise. She took her time, adding an entire page of thoughts to the back of his journal and handed it to him when she was done._ _

__“What’s this for?” he asked her, and she rested against the bed frame and let out a breath._ _

__“I don’t want to forget this feeling. In four hundred years, or whatever...When we’ve gotten so used to just traveling and being together, I want to remember the wonder of when it was all new. When we still couldn’t quite grasp the idea of forever. When we couldn’t help but make love twice in the span of five hours.” He grinned seductively at her and she laughed. “I want to always remember this. Before we get used to it.”_ _

__He just stared at her then, and his throat felt tight for a moment as he shook his head._ _

“I don’t think I’ll ever get _used_ to this, Rose. That’s what makes it so incredible,” he whispered. She smiled at him, and watched as he read the rest of her thoughts. He realized she wrote the entire thing in Gallifreyan, and he felt his eyes water when she talked about his soul, and the gift of time and marriage, and it felt in many ways like reading vows. He took a shaky breath when he got to the end and read the word ‘forever.’ 

__They smiled at each other, and he leaned in and kissed her, his hand cupping her cheek._ _

__“That was…” he began, trailing off and taking another long breath. “You up for a trip?”_ _

__He could show her what that meant to him far better than he could vocalize in that moment._ _

__“Always,” she said with a smile, and he winked at her._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's gonna be a little more sex in this series, and it's going to be slightly more explicit. Nothing crazy I don't think, but just a warning!


	2. Barcelona

They showered and got dressed, and his mind was swirling with the words on that page when she walked out into the console to meet him, and her hand immediately found his. They didn’t even think about it, and he led her to the door and grinned at her. “Allons-y, Rose Tyler,” he said, and with a flourish they pushed the door open, and a world of color and majesty awaited them. 

“Barcelona,” he told her. “Bout time, I reckon.” 

“Really?!” she asked, smiling at him and bouncing a little on her heels. He hummed happily, and she pulled him behind her as she ran to the main part of the planet, and he looked up at the sky. 

It was a mix of blue and purple, melting together in a tie-dye formation. Rose was staring at it too, and he held her hand, telling her about the gases in the atmosphere responsible for the view as they walked toward the largest building of the city. 

He never told her much about this place, and that seemed to build up expectations for the last few years. It shattered them all immediately. It was nothing like she thought it would be, and it was wonderful. The air was crisp, and the ground was warm beneath their feet. It smelled of spices and fresh baked bread and every building looked like it belonged in the riviera. Stone walls and yellow and green plants and red roofs surrounded them. There wasn’t an ocean, but it all reminded her of their villa, and he grinned at her and made a small happy sound. 

“What?” she asked, smiling up at him. 

“You said ‘our’ villa,” he said. He was giddy, as he usually was these days, and she just laughed and squeezed his hand as they moved through the city. 

He started telling her about parades and parties this planet held. The music, the food, the dancing; he told her about the many different types of people who resided there. There were of course the Barcelonians, who lived mostly within the area they were walking through now, but the planet was home to many more beyond the walls of the main city. He told her about Savron, the governor, who he said was one of the kindest people he had ever met. 

She looked around at the Barcelonians in awe. They looked human enough, a variety of shapes and sizes and complexions, though they were a little shorter than the average person in her world. Most wore fabric down their bodies and reminded her slightly of togas. Some men wore baggy pants and vests, but she noticed it was all fairly revealing, and the Doctor clicked his jaw when he inevitably imagined Rose in one of the outfits. She rolled her eyes, and it didn’t take long for them to realize that everyone seemed completely uninterested in them as they walked by; the Doctor in his blue suit and her in a denim skirt and gray crop top. 

They just shared a glance as they passed two people arguing over the price of fruit, and continued on their way.

They were laughing, still holding hands, when Rose was suddenly pushed to the ground by a man running away from some officers, and he shouted an apology to her before he immediately grabbed hold of a curtain on someone’s window and climbed up the wall until he reached the roof. The Doctor helped Rose stand back up as they both watched him jump from building to building. 

“Which way did he go?!” the largest officer demanded as he approached, and the Doctor just raised an eyebrow. 

“Sorry, who?” he asked. Rose smirked as the officer looked like he was about to lose his mind, and she stepped forward with her tongue in cheek smile, charming the man instantly. 

“What did he do?” she asked. The Doctor sighed, remembering Hagley from their trip to 1754 nearly a year ago. 

_Oh, it’s nothing like that,_ Rose thought, and he just bit his cheek. 

“He’s a thief,” the man said. Rose furrowed her brow, noticing he was also in baggy pants a vest, and he had a sword on his hip. 

“What did he steal?” she asked, and her spell wore off. The officer started to get frustrated and the Doctor stepped forward now, flashing Rose a look as he pulled out some psychic paper. 

The officer looked at it, and he huffed. “You’re an inspector?” 

“Ah, well...yes,” the Doctor said with a smile, and Rose just rolled her eyes. “James McKinnon. This is my wife, Rose. Can we...help, in some way?” 

“Just move your arses,” the guard said, and Rose and the Doctor looked at each other as he brushed past them and called the rest of his team over. Four other officers ran by, all with swords, and Rose’s Instincts woke up. 

“Let’s follow them,” she whispered, and he flashed her his deductive face. 

She flashed hers back. 

“Are you saying we do some sleuthing, Rose Tyler?” he asked. 

“I think I am,” she said, and he hummed again in happiness as he kissed her. She smiled and grabbed his hand again and both pulled out their sonic screwdrivers. 

The officers had slipped down an alley to their right and stayed on the ground, but Rose and the Doctor decided to climb. The stones on the buildings didn’t line up perfectly, creating ledges they could hold onto. She was grateful she wore some bicycle shorts under her skirt as they did, (not that he would mind either way), and let her lead, trusting her Instincts would know where to go as they reached the roof of the building the man had climbed onto. 

The roofs were all brick, and for a moment Rose stopped and took in the view of the planet from this height. It was breathtaking, and she could see for _miles._ There was a vast desert all around the city, but she noticed small pockets of other cities in the distance, and the sand looked a little purple as it reflected the gas in the sky. It felt like a painting, the way the Grand Canyon felt when he took her once in that year between the parallel world and Atlantis, and she realized the Doctor had absolutely meant this to be a date on that fateful day. Such a long time ago, and he just smirked. 

“Of course I did,” he said with a smile, and she bit her lip before they moved in the direction they saw the man go. The Doctor scanned the air, just in case it picked up on anything and they moved from building to building. They could hear the guards arguing with people below, and they carefully peered over the edge, but the men were too distracted looking for the thief to notice. 

“This way,” Rose whispered, and they moved behind them to a new set of buildings. She was surprised at how close together all the roofs were. It made travelling in this way incredibly easy, and they hopped onto a new spot, where they heard the unmistakable sound of crying. 

The Doctor stiffened and shared a glance with Rose. They moved slowly toward the sound, and then pulled back a heavy tapestry on a tower that connected to a building right next to them, and saw the man. 

He was trying to soothe two small children and handed them each an apple. Rose noticed he wore baggy pants and a vest, and the children were still crying. He was shushing them and rubbing their arms and trying to encourage them to eat, and the Doctor frowned. 

Rose felt her Instincts tug her down to the ground and she knelt in front of the children behind the man. They stopped crying the moment they saw her, and the Doctor watched, ignoring the sensation he gets in his stomach whenever he watches Rose with kids. Not that they are around them very often, but they visit Tony every few weeks, and they way she laughs when….

He sighed and bit his cheek, pushing the thoughts aside before they spiraled. Kids were on the table, they both knew it, but they had decided that they wanted some time just the two of them in this new forever timeline first. They deserved time just the two of them, frankly, but...well...he eventually wanted children with her more than he cared to admit. 

His impossible human. 

They both started to smile at her, and he let out a breath. Rose had that effect on people. Her infectious smile, as he called it. She always made people feel welcome and cared for. 

The man jumped a little when he realized they were there and he immediately moved to push them out, but Rose shook her head. “We’re not here to hurt you, we promise.” 

“How did you find us?” the man asked. 

“Luck,” the Doctor said with a small smile, and the man frowned at him. 

“You’re the woman I pushed...I’m sorry about that, look, if you want money or -” he started to say, but Rose just furrowed her brow and stood to look him in the eye. 

“No, no, nothing like that,” she said, and placed a hand on his shoulder. She could sense the fear and dread inside of him and she smiled, trying to ease what little of it she could. He relaxed slightly at her touch and just swallowed, and he looked back down at the children. “My name is Rose, what is yours?” 

“Al,” he said. Rose nodded. 

“Nice to meet you,” she said. “This is my husband, the Doctor. Can you tell us what’s going on?” 

Al’s eyes darted to the Doctor, who was still standing against the doorframe. The tower wasn’t that big and four bodies were already a lot, but he stepped forward as much as he could so the tapestry could close, and Al just sighed. 

“They were hungry. I was just trying to feed them,” he said. 

“Are they yours?” the Doctor asked. Al nodded once. 

“Yes. My wife, she…” he closed his eyes, and the Doctor felt that familiar pit in his stomach when he looked at anyone mourning a loved one. It always made him think of Alice. Rose grabbed his hand. 

“I’m so sorry,” the Doctor said. Al looked at him and shook his head. 

“She’s not...it’s...” he said, and he collapsed onto a small cushion that was against the wall. Rose looked at the two children and she smiled at them. 

“What about you two, then? What are your names?” she asked. 

“Daphne,” the younger one said. 

“Cassim,” the older one told her. She moved to sit by them. 

“Nice to meet you both. You’ve got a pretty strong father here, huh?” she asked. They nodded, and she turned to Al, who was watching her carefully. “Where’s your wife?” 

Al didn’t say anything. The Doctor glanced at Rose and looked around the tower. He quickly realized this must be where Al lives. There was a chamberpot of sorts in the corner, unused at the moment, and two small straw mattresses. He assumed Daphne and Cassim share one, or perhaps Al sleeps on the stone floor, but it felt lived in and cared for. There was one small window on the back wall, but Al had boarded it up. He crossed to it and began to scan discreetly, trying to obtain as much information as possible. 

“What are you doing?” Al asked, noticing. The Doctor turned to him with a calm expression and just held up his sonic screwdriver. 

“Scanning,” he said simply. “We’re time travelers.” 

“What?” Al asked, and he looked at Rose like he was crazy. She just smiled at him and nodded. 

“We don’t usually lead with that,” she said, and Al just stared. 

“Look, I don’t know what you’re playing at, but I don’t -” he started to say, but the Doctor leaned against the wall, and something in his eye made Al stop. It was as if he was reading his body language, trying to deduce the situation. “Stop that.” 

“We want to help,” the Doctor said. “My wife can always tell when people need help.” 

Al looked at her, and for some reason he believed those words. He sighed and took a deep breath. “She’s not here.” 

“We got that, yeah,” the Doctor said. “Is she in trouble?” 

He stayed quiet. Rose shifted her position on the floor so she was facing him instead, and watched. His eyes avoided looking at her, his fingers were tapping on his knee slightly, and she could swear he was practically shaking. She bit her lip. 

“They’ll hurt her if you say anything, won’t they? Whoever they are? Someone has her?” she whispered. The Doctor stood up straighter and watched as Al stared at her in shock, and the two children began to cry again. The Doctor moved to them and sat down next to them. 

“Tell you what,” he said. “I have coins. What if I take these two to the market and stock up on some food for all of you, and you and Rose can talk?” 

Al’s eyes widened, and the Doctor just nodded at him. He opened his mouth to protest but the Doctor stood up and moved to the door, calling Daphne and Cassim to follow. He promised them a toy as well which stopped their tears, and he nudged his mind to Rose, their eyes dancing with each other while the kids ran out of the tower. 

_All you, love._

_Be careful._

She knew he would hear everything, and when their voices faded she looked back at Al and sat quietly. “I can’t…” he whispered. 

“I know,” she said. “So let’s do it this way, yeah? I ask questions and you just... don’t say anything. Then you aren’t breaking any rules.” 

“How will -” he started to ask, but she smiled at him. 

“Don’t worry about that,” she said carefully. “Was she kidnapped?” 

Al just sat, but his body stayed still and his eyes locked with hers. She knew that wasn’t it. 

“Did she go willingly?” she whispered. Al’s jaw clenched and she nodded. “Are they dangerous?” Al was doing his best not to show any emotion, but she was catching it all and she knew she was on the right track. “I’m sorry. I know this isn’t fun, but trust me.” 

He didn’t say anything and she took a deep breath. “Were they threatening the children?” Al’s eyes started to water then and she bit her lip, grateful for her Instincts, and also suddenly quite angry that someone would try to harm a child. She decided to go another way. “Who do the officers work for?” 

“What?” he asked. She just looked at him. 

“Those officers, that were chasing you. Who do they work for?” she whispered. He shook his head. 

“The Genie, who else?” he said. Rose felt her heartbeat increase and she bit her lip. 

“Is that his actual name or…” she said, and Al just sighed. 

“I don’t know. It’s what everyone calls him. He’s been ruling this region forever, it feels like,” he said bitterly. Rose felt her wheels turn, and the Doctor was thinking alongside her as he perused the market. 

She noticed a stuffed monkey toy on one of the straw mattresses, and she felt her stomach flip because what she was about to ask seemed so silly it just couldn’t be true. 

“Al…” she said, “Is your name full name...Aladdin?” 

“Shhhh!” he said, holding a finger up to her lips. “Could you say that any louder?!?!” 

“Sorry,” Rose said, and he dropped his hand and sighed. 

“How did you even know that?” he asked. “No one has called me that in...years.” 

“Lucky guess,” Rose said, and she could feel the Doctor smirk in her mind. Her mind was spinning, and she let out a breath. “Tell me about the Genie.” 

“There’s not a lot to tell,” Aladdin said. “He’s powerful. And in charge. That pretty much sums it up.” 

“Yeah,” Rose said, nibbling on her lip. “Where I come from, there’s a story about a man named Aladdin, who falls in love with a princess and finds a lamp. And he rubs it and gets three wishes from a genie and saves the day from an evil, I dunno, sorcerer or something. And there’s a bird who likes crackers.” 

He just raised his eyebrows at her and she laughed. 

“Sounds like quite the tale,” he said. “There’s no magic lamps in Barcelona.” 

“Right,” she said. “Are you...positive, though?” 

“Yes,” he said with a small laugh. She just nodded. 

“Is your wife with the Genie?” she whispered. A shadow crossed his face and she took a deep breath. “Her name isn’t Jasmine is it?” 

“No,” Aladdin said, puzzled. “It’s Yasminda. Why?” 

“No reason,” Rose said, biting her lip, and the Doctor laughed madly in her head, finding her adorable and hilarious. “We’ll get her back.” 

“She can’t escape him,” he whispered. “Many have tried. All have failed.” 

“He hasn’t met us, yet. We’re very clever,” she whispered. “Look at me. I promise.” 

He stared at her, and for some reason he believed her. He just nodded and choked out a thank you, and Rose let out a breath. 

“Okay, then. First things first, food. The Doctor will be back soon. He’s a great cook,” she said with a smile, and she heard him groan in her head. 

She had made it a habit of offering his cooking skills to the people they help from time to time. But because he’s a man very much in love, he does it. 

He complains, though. 

She bit her lip and Aladdin just stared at her. He wanted to tell her it was too much, but he couldn’t. He was desperate at this point. Neither said much else for a few minutes, but the tapestry pushed open and Daphne and Cassis came rushing in laughing and talking over each other as they told Aladdin all about how much fun they just had with the Doctor. He walked in next, and his eyes immediately found Rose’s as he got to work on some food, using his sonic to heat it all up, and Aladdin just swallowed, trying to soothe his throat that had suddenly become quite dry. 

They stayed quiet as Daphne and Cassis ate. The Doctor insisted Aladdin eat something, too, but he shook his head. 

“They’re much hungrier. Thank you for this,” he said. Rose sighed. 

“You need strength, too,” she told him, and he took the smallest piece of bread. She rolled her eyes. Heroes are all the same. 

The kids both fell asleep with snores, their bellies properly full, and the Doctor made sure the rest of the meat was cooked thoroughly for them later, realizing there wasn’t a stove in the tower. Aladdin watched them and eventually stood. He handed them a locket. 

“This is her,” he said. Rose took it and carefully opened it, and she saw a picture of all four of them smiling. She looked at him. 

“She’s lovely,” she said. The Doctor looked at it, and his brow furrowed. 

He knew her. 

“I’ve met her before. She was just a child, the last time I was here. I attended a ball at the governor’s mansion...She’s Savron’s daughter, isn’t she?” he asked. Aladdin stared at him. 

“Yes,” he said softly. He looked at Rose and shook his head. “Savron governed this region for a long time. He was magnificent…”

“What happened to him?” the Doctor asked, his heart rate increasing. Aladdin just shook his head. 

“Later,” he whispered. The Doctor nodded. 

“Do you know where the Genie is?” he asked. Aladdin looked confused, unsure of how the Doctor knew what he and Rose talked about but he tried not to question it. They seemed to want to help, and he needed that more than he knew how to explain. He shook his head. 

“The Oracle might,” he said. “I’ve been trying to find her for...a very long time. He somehow controls everything from afar.” 

There was silence for a moment, and Rose and the Doctor held hands. 

“I’d like to come with you. My neighbor downstairs, Auria, she’ll watch Daphne and Cassis if I ask. I just...I’d like to come,” Aladdin said. 

“Of course,” the Doctor said. They watched as he seemed to ease at their acceptance and looked over at his children. He brushed Daphne’s hair off of her face. 

“We can’t go searching during the day. It has to be at night. It’s...” Aladdin began, but he broke off. 

“Why?” the Doctor asked. 

“Less patrol. There’s a curfew when the sun goes down. Most of the guards rest then, too,” he said. “We’ll have to be careful, though. The ones who are out patrolling are...lethal. Killed two last week.” 

The Doctor’s brow was furrowed. This was not the Barcelona he remembered. That place had been joyous, with festivals and good food and music trickling through the market. He remembered the parades with dancing and wild animals, and he could see Savron’s face as he welcomed him to the mansion. 

He sniffed as he stood up. Rose followed, and they nodded at Aladdin. 

“We’ll be right back. I have something that may help keep us hidden. Just in case,” the Doctor said. “Go ahead and take care of them. We’ll leave soon.” 

“Thank you,” Aladdin said. “I...For helping. Everyone is so scared of him…” 

“You’re welcome,” Rose said, and they left quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be very very loose references to Aladdin, hopefully it's fun :)


	3. Sand

The Doctor and Rose returned to the TARDIS carefully, both keeping an eye out for any wandering eyes or hovering guards. When they slipped inside the Doctor immediately ran his hand through his hair and Rose changed clothes, deciding a denim skirt might not be the most comfortable attire for a rescue mission. 

He moved to the medbay, grabbing the bio-dampers he made when they were still trying to stop Ridgemont Entities. He clenched his jaw when the Master’s face inevitably flashed through his mind, but he shook it away as quickly as he could, and instead tried to focus on crafting a third bio-damper from the same silicone material as before for Aladdin. 

Rose walked in, now wearing a pair of jeans and a red jumper, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. “You alright?” 

He just leaned against her, not surprised at all by this point that she knew what he briefly thought about. He nodded, and she bit her lip and grabbed her bio-damper, slipping in onto her pinkie. He slipped his on as well and looked at her, but she was giving him a careful look and he sighed. 

“I’m fine, Rose,” he said. 

“Okay,” she said, and he kissed the back of her hand. 

They sat in thought for a moment, and the Doctor looked at her with a small gleam in his eyes. “Can I just say... _Aladdin,_ Rose! I know it’s just a name, but what are the odds?! And the _Genie?!_ I mean -” 

“I know!” she said, and they just laughed for a moment as he pulled her into a hug. Eventually they pulled apart, and he grabbed Rose’s hand. “What do you think, mister? Wanna save the world from an evil alien and help reunite true love?”

He sighed and almost apologized that their Barcelona adventure was another mission, but she was beaming at him, and he smiled back. There was nothing she’d rather be doing than running by his side, and he knew that. 

She kissed him for that thought. 

They slipped out of the TARDIS and realized the sun had set. The blue and purple sky was dark, and the familiar view of the stars replaced it above their heads as they made their way back to Aladdin. Rose’s Instincts guided them and she tugged the Doctor with her behind a wheelbarrow as two officers walked by, some of the few left on patrol for the curfew. They were much larger and burlier, and they both had dogs with no noses, ready to attack. 

He had told her about those before. He had failed to mention they had fangs and _talons._

Rose shot him a look of shock and he grinned. They held their breath as the officers walked by, and they quickly slid away and moved back through the street quietly. 

The air was crisp but warm, and the contrast was making her shiver for some reason. He slipped his suit coat off and wrapped it around her arms, and she looked at him gratefully. He winked. 

They were surprised to see Aladdin waiting for them on the ground this time, tucked in the shadows against someone’s home. They approached him quietly, and he held his fingers to his lips and gestured with his head for them to follow him. The Doctor looked at Rose, and they walked after him. 

"Here," the Doctor whispered, handing Aladdin the bio damper. "Put this on. Will help hide your bio-signature, makes it harder for people to find you." 

Aladdin stared at it, and he took it silently, nodding once as a thank you and slipping it onto his finger. 

No one spoke for a while after that, and they had to do a couple quick ducks and tucks to hide from some of the officers and noseless dogs, but much to Rose’s relief they were able to make it safely away from the main part of the city, and Aladdin took a deep breath. 

“So where are you two from?” he asked, his voice piercing through the silence after many minutes. It was almost startling, and Rose squeezed the Doctor’s hand to stop from jumping. 

“Oh, far away,” the Doctor said. He didn’t say anything, and the Doctor sniffed. “What happened to Savron, Aladdin?” 

“Call me Al,” he said carefully, and the Doctor just nodded. “There was a war...We all fought. I don’t like to talk about it.” 

“I know the feeling,” the Doctor said, and Aladdin looked at him. He sighed. 

“The Genie just appeared and declared the planet was his. We fought him off as best we could, but when he started killing people for just standing on their doorsteps...We surrendered,” Aladdin whispered. 

“How long ago was that?” Rose asked. Compassion lined her voice and it caused Aladdin to stare at her, and he gulped. 

“Feels like forever,” he muttered. The Doctor and Rose just looked at each other, that word still making their hearts flutter despite the circumstances, and they all walked in silence for a while. 

“I thought Barcelonians lived for up to a thousand years?” the Doctor said after a while. “You’re some of the most creative and inventive people in the universe...Surely you’re smarter than this. You haven’t been able to stop him in all this time?” 

He didn’t mean it to sound so insulting, but Aladdin glared at him. “We have tried. Many times.” 

“Well....” the Doctor said in that way he does, the one that told Rose he was about to say something unintentionally rude again, and she cut in. 

“When he’s stressed, he likes to insult species,” she told Aladdin, rubbing her husband’s arm as he tried to protest. “Don’t take it personally. He called me a stupid ape once.” 

“Rose…” the Doctor groaned. “I’m not stressed and how many times do I have to apologize -” 

_Shut it, look._

Aladdin was smiling, slightly, and he chuckled a bit at Rose’s words. The Doctor took a deep breath and just looked at her, shaking his head. 

_I regret that immensely, Rose._

_I know, spaceman._

He bit his cheek and clicked his jaw as she flashed him a prideful smile, and he could practically see the high five Donna would have given her. 

“You’re not the same species?” Aladdin asked. “You look the same.” 

“Oh that’s...it’s a long story,” Rose said, and the Doctor felt his hearts skip a beat. 

Aladdin didn’t comment further and kept moving, and Rose decided to push a little more. “Have you ever _seen_ the Genie?” Rose asked. Aladdin frowned. 

“Of course,” he said. “He’s not from Barcelona. Arrived here on a star.” 

“What?” the Doctor asked, and Rose felt his heart rate increase in her ring. “What’s that mean?” 

“Exactly that. A falling star. Landed on the planet. The Genie came with it,” Aladdin said. “Come on, let’s go this way.” 

“What’s through here?” the Doctor asked, and Rose looked at him. He wanted to know more about this star, she could tell, and she bit her lip. 

“I dunno, just trying to see where the Oracle is. I’ve never made it this far...” Aladdin said. Rose stopped walking. 

“We’re going the wrong way,” she said suddenly, and both the Doctor and Aladdin looked at her. Aladdin just started to laugh, but the Doctor didn’t question her, immediately turning and following. 

“Listen to her, Al!” the Doctor called. 

“You’re not from here...Rose! Doctor!” Aladdin shouted, and he groaned as he tried to catch up with them, but they were running, and it turns out they were much faster than him. 

He was panting by the time he found them at a fork in the road. It was all sand, but it split in two directions and there were sand clouds rising against the moonlight. He winced as a pain in his side appeared. “What are you doing? We can’t be here.” 

“Yes we can,” Rose said. “This way.” 

She and the Doctor began to move to the fork on the right, but Aladdin reached out and stopped them. “Stop! I’m telling you, it’s not a good idea. Dark things lie through these pathways. We don’t go near them. Things the Genie put in place. Rumors, legends... I don’t know. But everyone who has ever tried to venture through them to stop him has never returned. It’s impossible, come back the other way. The Oracle would never go down there.” 

Rose bit her lip, and she sighed. “You don’t really know us, Al, but I happen to _love_ impossible things. You can stay or you can come, but I’m going.” 

She turned and walked forward, and the Doctor eyed Aladdin carefully. 

“When I say we should listen to her, I don’t take that lightly,” the Doctor said. “She has a gift. Instincts, they’re called. She can sense things that others can’t. If she says to walk down the path, then that’s where I’m going.” 

“And I suppose if she told you to jump off a cliff, you’d do that, too?” Aladdin asked sarcastically. The Doctor just smiled. 

“Yes. She has in fact. Twice. It was loads of fun,” he said, and Aladdin’s brow just creased. 

“Doctor, this planet -” he said. 

“Is in danger so long as the Genie is around, right?” the Doctor asked. Aladdin didn’t say anything, and he just nodded. “How long has she been gone, Yasminda?” 

Aladdin looked down at his feet. “Long enough.” 

The Doctor felt his hearts stop at the tone in his voice. It was a one he knew intimately and he stared at him. He placed a hand on his shoulder and when he spoke, it was soft and kind, and it made Aladdin’s jaw tremble. “I lost Rose once. I thought...It was my fault and I thought I would never see her again. I was…” 

“What happened?” Aladdin asked, his eyes meeting the Doctor’s, who smiled at him. 

“I did a few things I knew weren’t a good idea. And it worked,” he said, and Aladdin’s eyes darted to the pathways. The Doctor swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Look at me. I’m very clever. Very. And Rose...I believe in her, Al, and we will find Yasminda and stop the Genie.” 

Aladdin was stunned listening to the way the Doctor spoke about his wife. There was a conviction in his words that sent a shiver down his spine, and a determination in his eyes that told Aladdin it didn’t matter what he chose, the Doctor was following Rose anywhere and everywhere, and he would be right to do the same. 

He nodded, even though his entire body was telling him not to, and the Doctor turned and walked after Rose. 

She was only a few feet away with her sonic screwdriver in front of her. She was using the light at the end to illuminate the path through the sand, and the Doctor saw she was covering her mouth and nose with her sleeve. He engaged his respiratory bypass and Aladdin took off his vest, trying to ignore the cuts he was getting on his chest from the storm. 

There was glass in the sand, Rose realized. 

_We’ve gotta move quick._

_Lead the way._

“CLOSE YOUR EYES!” she shouted at Aladdin, and they all ran. 

They couldn’t see where they were going and were all linked together by their hands. Eventually, after a minute or so, they tumbled down the side of a hill just as the sandclouds disappeared and they were rolling like logs until they reached the bottom. Rose was coughing and the Doctor was shaking sand out his hair. They turned to Aladdin, and they froze momentarily when they realized he was bleeding profusely all over his chest. Shards of glass were poking out and Rose looked at her hands, seeing cuts as well. The Doctor could suddenly feel some on his cheeks and their eyes locked. 

_It’s a death trap. The people here don’t wear clothes that cover enough of their skin...They’d all bleed out if they tried to walk through it._

The Doctor frowned when he heard those words, realizing Aladdin was correct when he said there would be dark things beyond the path. He touched his cheek and winced, and Rose ran to Aladdin. He was much worse off than either of them, writhing and screaming, and she grabbed a hold of his face, ignoring his blood that was suddenly coating her hands. 

“Hey, hey, hey, look at me. Al, look at me,” she said. He did, and she took a deep breath. “This is going to hurt, I’m sorry.” 

Before he could say anything she activated her Vortex energy, and he shouted curse words as the light radiated through him, burning and scorching until it wasn’t, and every last cut on his skin was gone. He gasped when the sensation ended and stayed still, staring at her. She nodded. “All better?” 

“What the hell was that?” he choked, and her tongue trailed along her bottom lip. 

“I can...heal people,” she said. “Doesn’t matter. Is it better or not?” 

“Y-yeah,” Aladdin said, and she let out a breath and moved to the Doctor. 

“Your turn,” she said, but he shook his head. 

“I’m fine. Take care of yourself first.” he said. 

She just gave him a look and rolled her eyes, quickly healing the cuts on her hands, neck, and face. She was used to the temporary pain by this point, and he was looking around, trying to figure out where they were, and Aladdin was still lying flat in the sand, shocked. 

“Doctor?” Rose asked, and he looked at her. “Please?” 

“Rose,” he whined, but she just crossed her arms and he sighed. “ _Fine_ ,” he said, not wanting to waste anymore time, but she kissed his cheek and touched his skin and he closed his eyes, clenching his jaw as the energy healed the cuts on his face, too. It was...unpleasant, and Rose smirked a little at the huffing noise he made, but it ended quickly. He sighed and kissed her. “Thank you.” 

“Mhm,” she said, and they linked hands and looked back at Aladdin. “Come on. Let’s keep walking.” 

He sat up slowly, and stood, following them through the vast expanse of sand. He was staring at Rose carefully, trying to understand who the hell both of them were, and Rose was nibbling on her lip. “Why don’t you use your name?” 

He took a deep breath, but he didn’t speak. The Doctor continued to look around, but all he saw was sand, and after a few minutes Aladdin finally broke the silence. 

“I don’t...deserve that name,” he muttered. “I go by Al now.” 

The Doctor, for a moment, felt like he was looking in a mirror. He chose his name for that same reason, and when he saw Aladdin’s jaw clench he felt his do the same. 

“It’s what she called me,” Aladdin whispered. “After...Everyone calls me Al.” 

The Doctor felt his throat tighten, remembering the first time he heard someone say his name after Rose fell into that parallel world. It was on Earth, in Cardiff, when he went to talk to Jack and help him with something he couldn’t remember at that moment. All he wanted was _her_ voice. He wanted...Oh, how he wanted…

He sighed and looked down at the sand as they walked, startled by the feeling in his stomach, and Rose squeezed his hand, sensing where his mind was wandering off to. He kissed her head. 

Rose led them through the desert, but they all realized they had been walking for hours and even at night the desert was hot. Much hotter than the city. They all needed some water, and she was starting to feel quite tired.

She remembered seeing the pockets of cities on the top of the roof earlier, and she turned the left and began to walk, hoping they might find one. 

It was a lot of sand. 

Fatigue began to set in all three of them, and the Doctor kept checking in on Rose, trying to see how she was doing. She kissed his shoulder, and Aladdin yawned, which the Doctor tried his absolute hardest not to reciprocate, but it was impossible. 

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they found one of the small towns. 

“There’s tons of these, for those that aren’t Barcelonian, all around the planet,” Aladdin said. His eyes were red, still recovering from the sandstorm, and he sighed. “We can’t keep going tonight, can we?” 

Rose just shook her head and felt her own yawn threaten to reveal itself. She suppressed it, somehow, and looked at Aladdin. “We won’t be of any use to her if we’re this exhausted. Is there a place we could sleep for a few hours? Maybe get some water and food?” 

“Yeah, probably,” Aladdin muttered. He did not want to stop, but his own head was killing him from dehydration and he looked around. He spotted an inn and led them to it, and it was very clear there was a tavern on the first floor. 

Aladdin and Rose immediately ordered some food and drinks from a man with a pig snout, and the Doctor checked them into two rooms. He walked over and sat next to Rose, and she slid a plate of something with meat, fruit, and vegetables on it over to him, and he flashed her a tired smile. 

It was an awkward and silent few minutes. 

“Is she the only one?” the Doctor asked eventually. Aladdin looked at him. 

“What do you mean?” he said. 

“The Genie. Is she the only one who he took?” the Doctor asked. Aladdin sighed. 

“He didn’t take her,” he murmured. He was playing with his food, moving something that looked like a brussel sprout from one side of the plate to the other. Rose sipped her water and rubbed her lips together. 

“What happened, then?” she asked. Aladdin shook his head. 

“She volunteered herself,” he whispered. His voice was heavy, and Rose felt her stomach tighten. “Always had to be so bloody noble.” 

Even _that_ sounded like him, the Doctor thought. 

“Like...a sex slave?” she said, grimacing as she asked. Aladdin’s face twisted. 

“No. No, I...I don’t…” he tried to say, but Rose’s heartbeat was racing and the Doctor placed his hand on her knee, giving it a slight squeeze, trying to comfort her. 

“Why?” he asked. Aladdin took a deep breath. 

“Savron was killed. When that happened, she did the only thing she thought she could,” he said, finally allowing his eyes to meet theirs. “She made him a deal. She was the next in line to govern...He was going after our entire family. Our kids...they were so small.” 

Rose put the pieces together, and she set her fork down with a clink. “She is the one who surrendered the planet, wasn’t she? During the war...she said she would go with him if he would stop attacking everyone? She gave him control?” 

Aladdin didn’t say anything, but Rose realized that meant Yasminda had been gone for, as Aladdin put it, ‘forever.’ She felt her stomach flip over and her hand immediately grabbed the Doctor’s. 

Aladdin, whose expression had been unreadable this entire time, buried his face in his hands and something in the Doctor broke, just for a moment. He knew that feeling, and his own eyes brimmed with tears and he had to look away, blinking a dozen times. Rose sensed it, of course, and she ran her finger along his wedding ring. 

_I’m right here._

_I know, Rose. I know._

He was reminded, for the first time in many months, that losing her was a wound that would never completely heal. 

They were silent for a while, all finishing their food, and eventually Aladdin spoke again. “She’s not the only one.” 

“How many?” the Doctor asked. 

“I don’t know,” he whispered. “He takes people as punishment...We just wake up some days and the officers... Most likely it's someone who broke curfew or tried to find loved ones who were taken before...That fork we went though...we shouldn’t have survived that.” 

Rose didn’t say anything, and the Doctor sniffed. “Do you think she’s...I’m sorry to even ask this, but do you think -” 

“She’s alive,” Aladdin snapped, and the Doctor shut up. 

“Then we’ll find her,” Rose whispered, and Aladdin felt tears coming on again and he stood up. 

“You said you wanted to rest. Let’s just...do that,” he said, deflecting his feelings as best he could. 

Rose watched as Aladdin huffed away and moved up the stairs to his room, and she looked back at the Doctor. “He reminds me of...you.” 

“Yeah,” the Doctor murmured, a little ashamed but not surprised she had also noticed, and he and Rose slipped up the stairs as well into their own room. 

The bed was creaky and the only light was a gaslamp, which they lit with their sonic screwdrivers. They washed up as best they could, the Doctor grateful for the spare toothbrushes he keeps in his pockets, and laid down. Rose tucked her cheek up against the Doctor’s chest and he wrapped his arms around her, running his fingers up and down her spine. 

“I love you,” he said, and she nodded. 

“I love you, too.” 

She was sleepy, and he remembered that she had been doing all that hard thinking when he was resting earlier, and she fell asleep in his arms after just a few minutes. He tried to sleep too, and he did a little bit, but it was restless and he kept waking up, his inner monologue chatting away at him as he dissected the events of the last few hours. 

This planet had been such a paradise. 

That was weighing on him heavily. It had been nearly four years since her face was the first face this face saw, which meant they could have potentially stopped the Genie ages ago and saved the planet and its people centuries of pain. It was one of his favorite spots in the universe, and he sighed and kissed Rose’s forehead. 

He was very sad about Savron. That man was the first kind person he met after the Time War, and his kindness stopped him from completely losing his mind. He was also jarred by Aladdin, who was stirring up feelings he thought he had buried long ago. He felt a panic brewing inside of him when he almost went down a full spiral of thoughts and memories of life without Rose for the first time since Rassilon fell through that black hole, but he stopped himself when she said his name in her sleep. 

They had forever now. 

He kissed her hair and closed his eyes, and for the next few minutes he was consumed by memories of his wife, and his beating hearts slowed to a normal rate. His best friend. His equal. He thought about her smile when she hands him a cuppa in the morning, the way it feels when she twists her fingers in his hair. Her tongue in cheek smile. Her never ending wit and banter. He thought about the many adventures they had been on together, and how she continues to amaze him with each passing day. 

She wasn’t Time Lady, but...she basically was. 

Human DNA. Timelord lifespan. 

She said his name again, and this time there was a breathiness in it that stirred him out of his thoughts. She was definitely still asleep, moaning lightly, and he bit his cheek when he realized she was having a sex dream. He tried to ignore the pulse in his groin because she _needed_ to sleep and he knew this, and he shut his eyes and tried to think about anything else other than the way her heartbeat suddenly felt in his ring or the way her hair was ticking his chin ever to slightly, or the fact that her body was clinging to his… 

She made a humming noise, the one she makes when he nibbles on her ear and he carefully slid out from under her and moved to the window. He didn’t trust himself. 

She sprawled out on the bed with a creak, and his mind flashed to all the other ways he could make that sound with her and he groaned. Voracious. That’s what he was. Absolutely bloody unbelievable, and he turned his attention to the window and stared up at the sky. 

For a moment, his eye found the spot where Gallfirey would have sat, and his hearts dropped to his stomach. 

_Exactly that. A falling star. Landed on the planet. The Genie came with it…_

Something about those words sent alarm bells sounding in his mind, and he clenched his jaw as he stared at the sky. 

“Hey,” Rose murmured. He turned to her, her hair a little messy and her eyes barely open, and he couldn’t help but smile at her. 

“You should be sleeping,” he said. “Nice dream?” 

“Mmm…” she said, and nodded. “Come here.” 

He moved to her and sat on the bed, the mattress creaking again and she sat up and rested her chin on his shoulder. “Woke me up. The hum in my head.” 

He made a small smile and looked at their wedding rings, and he just shook his head. “I’m sorry.” 

“You okay?” she whispered. He nodded and pulled her into a hug, and took a deep breath. Sweet honey filled his lungs and Christmas filled hers, and he sighed, fully aware he wasn’t fooling her at all. 

“This just isn’t right,” he said. “Whatever is going on.” 

“It never is,” she said softly, and he clenched his jaw again. 

“Yeah,” he said with a sigh, and he pulled out of the hug and looked back at the sky. “I know it’s probably nothing...that this is probably stupid...but…” 

“You’re worried this has something to do with home?” she asked, tilting her head to trace every freckle she could see against the moonlight. He smirked. 

“You’re good, Lewis,” he said. She flashed him her favorite smile. 

“We’ll deal with it, then. If it is,” she told him, and his eyes locked with her’s. “Together.” 

Hazel galaxies swam in chocolate for a moment, and found himself leaning down and kissing her, his hand in her hair and his tongue darting out to brush against hers, and sure enough, they found themselves deepening the kiss. Rose ignored the creak of the bed as she slid back and he crawled over to meet her, lips still dancing, and she was pulling him out of his Oxford and tossed it onto the floor. 

“The bed is so damn loud,” Rose whispered with a giggle and he smiled at her, his fears forgotten about for now. 

“Who cares?” he said, and she caught his lips in hers as they wrapped their arms around each other, but she pulled back. 

“We shouldn’t, what if -” she said, and he bit his lip, and she forgot how to breathe. He had _never_ done that before, and she groaned as she pulled him down to kiss her again. 

“Thought you said we shouldn’t?” he asked with a smile. The creaking noise was filling the entire room and she was positive it was echoing down the hall, and she let out a frustrated sound. He looked at her adoringly as she rolled away from him and grabbed her sonic screwdriver. He watched her, his mouth hanging open slightly as she flipped through the settings and scanned the bed. 

He had a flashback to the first time they made love, and he was entirely undone. 

She tossed the screwdriver back onto her jumper, which he had removed, and climbed onto the bed, letting out a sigh of relief when it made no noise at all. He licked his lips without realizing it as she moved to straddle him, the moonlight spilling in behind her against the window, and she tore off her bra. “That’s much better.” 

“Oh, yes,” he panted, and she lowered her body onto his. Their mouths were everywhere and both were still wearing far too many clothes for their liking, and they separated long enough to strip. The Doctor began muttering at his belt in Gallifreyan when he couldn’t get it off and Rose had to bring a finger to his lips and shush him as he slowly got louder, laughing, until he just broke the belt buckle and decided he’d fix it in the morning before they left. 

“I could have helped you with that,” she said with a wolfish smile and he just pressed her onto the mattress and shook his head. 

“Too many seconds,” he said, and she bit her lip. “Would’ve wasted far...too...many...seconds…” 

He glided in and out of her as he said these words and she covered her mouth with her hand to stop a scream, still determined to be quiet. He was determined not to be, which made the night full of tantalizing sensations and a playful battle of the minds that only made sense to them. They were entirely enraptured with each other, and when they did speak it was in Gallifreyan, which even after all this time still got under the Doctor’s skin and left a trail of goosebumps in its wake. 

They weren’t quiet at all at the end, minds and hearts and souls all one, and the moonlight danced on their skin as their bodies tingled and they caught their breath, and they both jumped when there was a loud banging on the door. 

“Knock it off! I’m trying to sleep!” a man snarled, and Rose slapped the Doctor’s arm as he burst into laughter.


	4. The Oracle

They spent the following day exploring the small town. Aladdin tried not to mind, they wouldn’t be able to travel by daylight and Rose and the Doctor were using it as an opportunity to get a better understanding of the state of the entire planet, not just the main city. 

It turned out, everyone feared the Genie. 

No one wanted to talk about him. Rose and the Doctor tried, but people either changed the subject or ran away, and they knew the sooner they found the Oracle the better. 

They did a small amount of sightseeing, but it was clouded by anxiety, and Aladdin kept pacing and huffing, which was driving Rose a little crazy. A few noseless dogs, this time wild, wandered around and Rose found herself looking at them longingly, sensing people here don’t pay them much attention, and the Doctor smiled at her. 

“Just pet it,” he said knowingly. She bit her lip and knelt down, and he watched as the dog licked her hand, and she giggled. Aladdin’s mouth fell open. 

“How’s she doing that? Those things hate everyone,” he said. The Doctor just smirked at him. 

“People tend to gravitate toward her,” he said, falling hard for her all over again as her laugh sounded around them. Aladdin just shook his head. 

The moment the sun began to set, they moved back to the sand, Rose still leading with the Doctor’s hand in her’s, and they watched in silence for a while as the sky turned to stars. 

“What does he look like?” the Doctor asked, his thoughts of his home on his mind again the moment the galaxy sat above their heads. Aladdin frowned. 

“He’s...I dunno how to describe it,” he said. “Blue, sort of.” 

Rose bit her lip, an image of the cartoon flashing through her mind, and the Doctor just shook his head at her, rubbing his eye a little. 

_It’s not that._

_You don’t know!_

He usually kisses her when she’s this adorable, but Aladdin looked at them sadly and he resisted. “All my memories of seeing him are from…” 

“It’s okay,” Rose said, and Aladdin just sighed. 

“How did you two meet?” the Doctor asked, changing the subject to something he hoped would be happier, and Rose looked at him in surprise. Aladdin smiled. 

“Oh, it was a lot of riff raff,” he said. The Doctor shot Rose a look before she could comment, and she smirked at him. “I was a food vendor for the mansion. She and I got to talking one night...I just knew. Apparently so did she.” 

“Love at first sight?” Rose asked, and Aladdin laughed. 

“Ah, I dunno...that always seemed a little silly to me,” he said. 

“I thought that too, once. But...well..” the Doctor said, sniffing and still staring at the stars. “It was pretty much the same for us.”

Aladdin just looked at them and nodded, a small smile on his face. They walked in silence for a while, and Aladdin eventually kept talking as Rose kept leading, her Instincts telling them to go straight. 

It was just more sand. 

“Savron...he should have rejected me. Anyone else would have, but he was just too kind,” Aladdin said wistfully, looking up at the sky. “I miss him.” 

“He was kind to me, too,” the Doctor said, and Aladdin just nodded. 

“What about you two? How are you with the in-laws?” he asked. The Doctor rolled his eyes. 

“Her mother is impossible,” he said, and Rose slapped his arm again. “But...they’re my family.” 

She smiled at him, and kissed his shoulder. “His parents...we got along quite well, I’d say.” 

“Oh, yes,” the Doctor said, his throat tight. 

“That’s good,” Aladdin said. “That’s important.” 

The air felt lighter a little, and Rose and the Doctor told him a little bit about Tony and Pete. They figured they had made Aladdin share his life story, he deserved to know a little about them. 

They were eventually laughing as Aladdin took in the story of the last time they visited, just over a week ago, when the Doctor and Tony built a fort and Jackie nearly lost her mind. He may have used some...unconventional things. For authenticity. 

“What does that mean?” Aladdin asked, and Rose rolled her eyes. 

“He ran back to the 1880s and brought actual stone from a fort in Ireland that was being torn down at the time and stacked it in my mum’s living room,” she said. 

“What?” Aladdin asked, laughing. The Doctor was grinning like a maniac, still so very pleased by his efforts and just how angry it had made Jackie Tyler, and how happy it made Tony, and Rose elbowed his ribs. 

_Git._

“What’s Ireland?” he asked. 

“It’s a place where I’m from,” Rose said. And Aladdin just nodded. 

They were still laughing and telling stories, when suddenly they saw smoke from a distance. They stopped talking immediately, and Rose gripped the Doctor’s hand, her Instincts alert. “Come on.”

They walked as quickly as they could toward it, and approached a small house. A peddlers cart was parked outside, and they could hear a woman singing. Through the window, it was clear she had a third eye on her forehead. Aladdin gasped. 

“You... did it,” he murmured. He stared at Rose, who was already moving to knock on the door. “No, wait! You -” 

The woman opened the door just as Rose raised her hand. Her hair was silver and twisted in a tight knot, and she wore more clothing than the people they saw in the city; long dark green skirts and a black corset, and she sniffed the air, all her eyes closed. 

“I smell a wolf and...something...” she said. Aladdin gave her a strange look, but the Doctor grabbed Rose’s hand and pulled her back a little, and they both stared at the woman.

“My name is Rose,” she said. The Oracle blinked three times and then looked at her. She smiled, where they saw a row of chipped and dirty teeth. 

“Who is that beside you?” she asked. 

“I’m the Doctor,” he said. “We’re trying to find the Genie.” 

The Oracle sniffed again, and her eye darted to Aladdin. “Ah… That was the other smell. A street rat.” 

Aladdin stiffened, and Rose and the Doctor, normally, would have shared a look, especially after all the banter they did in their minds before, but something about this woman was...strange, and they were too concerned by the way the she was moving around them to care about her insults or possibly unintentioned references. 

“Do you know where he is?” Rose asked. The Oracle moved back inside her house. 

“So hasty,” she said. She had a lisp, and the ‘s’ sound slithered between her teeth. “I do...Come and sit.” 

The Doctor’s face was stone and calculated, but the woman pushed her door open and gestured to a table by a fireplace, and they realized that’s where the smoke was coming from. Rose’s tongue played in the corner of her mouth but she stepped forward slowly, and moved to the table. The Doctor sat beside her, holding her closer than usual, and Aladdin sat across from them. The Oracle brought some tea over and set it in the middle of the table. 

The Doctor scanned it, and Rose groaned. 

_Doctor, that’s rude._

_Do you want to be poisoned today?_

She shot him a look and he just sighed, the scan coming back clean as he returned his screwdriver to his pocket. The Oracle was looking at him carefully. 

“Drink your tea. It will let me see,” she said. “And I will tell you what you need to know.” 

Rose nodded, and with a frown the Doctor poured them each a small cup. A few moments passed as the Oracle walked in a circle around them, and after a they each took a few sips she moved to the Doctor. 

“So much pain…” she said. “The Lonely God. But...no...not so lonely now, are you? No...You are not alone at all.” The Doctor stared at her, his brow creased and she took his hand. He stiffened but didn’t stop her, curious what else she might say. She wasn’t using telepathy he quickly realized, and he was fascinated. She took a deep breath. “So much darkness... Such a large storm...Such a long life...” Rose watched, and her eyes darted to Aladdin, who was looking at the Doctor with concern. “But such a strong heart. No. Hearts. So well mended. That will serve you well. You will need them.” 

She dropped his hand and he swallowed hard, and she turned next to Aladdin. She took his hand. “So much fear…” Aladdin clenched his jaw in a similar way to the Doctor’s, and she continued. “So lonely as well…So meek...” The Doctor avoided looking at Aladdin at these words, and she sighed. “So devoted...You need the Genie.” 

“Where is he?” Aladdin asked, and the Oracle shook her head. 

“You will not be able to find him,” she said. “But he is not far. I have been watching him.” 

“No, no, I have to -” Aladdin began to protest, but the Oracle held up her hand and reached for Rose’s hand. 

She opened her mouth, but shut it, her brow furrowing. She traced her palm, tilting her head in confusion, and both the Doctor and Rose felt their stomachs flip over. “You...You are...” She broke off, flipping Rose’s hand over. “An impossible thing…” The Doctor bit his cheek, looking down at the ground. Rose just watched the Oracle. “A Gift of Time….Your potential...A wolf...” Rose just watched, and the Oracle gripped her wrist so tightly it started to hurt. Rose let out a whimper of pain and the Doctor immediately grabbed the Oracle's arm and pulled her off of his wife, glaring at her. She stared at Rose with wide eyes. “Your cubs will howl, too. You need to be prepared.” 

“What?” Rose asked, her heart skipping a beat. The Doctor perked up at these words, too, wrapping his arm around Rose protectively, and they both stared at her. “What’s that mean?” 

The Oracle traced her hand again, and closed her third eye. “Your heart is strong, too. It beats in harmony with both of his...” She opened her eyes, and she stared at them. “Where are you from?” 

“Gallifrey,” the Doctor said. 

“Earth,” Rose whispered. 

She just blinked at them, and nodded. “You will be able to find him.” 

“Which way do we go?” Rose whispered, and the Oracle smiled at her, her teeth somehow more cracked and dirty than they were before. 

“Find the Valley of Stars, and he will appear,” she said. 

“Can you tell us anything about how to stop him?” the Doctor asked. The Oracle looked at him curiously. 

“Time Lord…” she said, touching his hand again. “He fears you.” 

“Most do,” the Doctor said, and Rose found herself playing with her hoop earring, her heart in her ears. He clenched his jaw. “What did you mean by our cubs will howl?” 

The Oracle didn’t say anything, and the Doctor felt his breathing grow shallow. Rose gripped his hand. 

_I’m not pregnant. It’s okay._

_I still want to know._

She looked at him, and the Oracle just shook her head. 

“I told you all you need to know,” she said, and the Doctor stiffened. 

“Tell us more, then,” he said, his voice darker than it was before. Aladdin stood, unable to sit in the room any longer and immediately moved to the door, slamming it behind him. Rose and the Doctor shared a glance, then looked back at the Oracle for a moment, who was still staring at them. 

“Will they be okay? Our...cubs?” Rose whispered. The Oracle stayed quiet and Rose felt her stomach twist. She had a look in her eye like she wasn’t sure how to answer her, and the Doctor, suddenly frustrated with everything about this woman with three eyes, grabbed Rose’s hand. 

“Don’t listen to her. Come on,” he said, and Rose looked back at the Oracle over her shoulder as they walked out the door, and saw her nod at her.


	5. Puzzles

Both Rose and the Doctor wanted to talk, and he pulled her into a hug the moment the door closed. Before they had the chance to open their mouths, they heard Aladdin shout and they looked over, where they found him a hundred feet away, running through the sand. The Doctor groaned, wishing people would just stay put for once, and they chased after him, calling his name, until he eventually collapsed in the sand. Crying.

“Al, what’s wrong?” Rose asked, kneeling in front of him.

“She said I can’t go in, I can’t help…” he said, choking back a sob. The Doctor took a deep breath, his frustration rising by the second.

“Stop it,” he said, and Rose looked at him. He kept crying and the Doctor let out a sound of annoyance. “Aladdin.” The name caused him to glare at the Doctor, who knelt down beside Rose. “Do you trust us?” He swallowed, and with a deep breath he let out a small nod. “Right, then. Stop crying. We’re wasting time.”

His voice was not nearly as soft and understanding as it was earlier, and Rose knew immediately he was letting their interaction with the Oracle affect his mood. She felt a knot in her stomach from it as well, and she tried to check on him, but she sighed when his blocks went up. He started to walk away and she saw the beginning signs of the Oncoming Storm appearing; his face concentrated and his entire body tense.

She wanted to nudge her mind to him, but she knew he wouldn’t let her in right now so she held her hand out to Aladdin, who took it carefully, and she ran to catch up with the Doctor. He grabbed her hand the moment she was next to him and gripped it tightly. He gets in moods, though it’s been a while since she’s seen one quite like this. She can’t blame him for it, she supposed, and she also knows she only needs to worry about it if it lingers.

This one, she suspected, might just do that.

The stars twinkled in the sky above their heads, and Rose noticed three of the brightest ones lined up diagonally, pointing down. Her brow furrowed, and she stopped. “It’s an arrow,” she murmured, choosing to focus on the mission more than the Oracle right now. The Doctor looked at her then, and his attention turned to the stars as well. “Follow me.”

They did, and Rose led them through the sand for a while, following the direction of the stars, when they suddenly found themselves overlooking another hill.

“The Valley of the Stars?” Aladdin asked. There was a pit of sand below them and the stars lined up in a straight line above the middle of it. Rose looked around, breathing in the air and taking it all in, and she closed her eyes. Her Instincts were wide awake, and she pulled out her sonic screwdriver and began to scan the sand. The Doctor watched her, a million thoughts swirling in his head.

He just wanted to hold her, and he closed his eyes.

“Al?” she asked, nibbling on her lip. “You haven’t heard of a place called the Cave of Wonders, have you?”

The Doctor wasn’t in a joking mood, and he almost made a stupid comment, but he stopped when he saw just how serious she was. He frowned and watched her scan more, realizing she was doing all the work while he...wallowed.

_You need to be prepared._

Those words, more than any of the others, were ringing in his ears and he moved to her, helping her scan the sand slowly. His brain was berating him heavily, chastising him for falling into old habits; shutting her out and getting ahead of himself; all of which were things the two of them had worked so very, very hard on…

She was watching him, and he could read what her eyes were saying.

_We don't jump ahead of ourselves or let out fears guide us. We hold on tight. The here and now._

His impossible human. Perfect, pink, yellow and gold.

This trip was messing with his head, much more than it should be and much more than he was prepared for, and it was making him angry. They had forever, and he just wished, so much, that the universe would just let that be enough.

He knew the Oracle’s words upset her, too. He felt his throat tighten as her eyes searched his face for comfort, and all he wanted to do was pull her into a hug and tell her he wasn’t going to let anything happen to her or their future children.

But as per usual, the universe needed saving first.

When he saw Rose’s eyes water he stopped thinking and dropped his screwdriver, pulling her to him. “Come here,” he whispered, not caring about the universe when she was looking at him like that. He hugged her tightly, and opened his mind enough to send her a wave of love, and she took a deep breath as they held onto each other. Aladdin cleared his throat.

“Shouldn’t we keep moving?” he asked. The Doctor sighed.

“Just...give us a minute,” he said stiffly, and Aladdin muttered under his breath and looked up at the line of stars. The Doctor pressed his lips to Rose’s ear. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. But he’s right,” Rose said softly, standing back up and looking at the sand. The Doctor’s Adam's apple bobbed, worried about her, but he took her hand and just stood beside her.

They both sensed it this time.

Something was out there, hiding in the sand.

His eyes locked with hers, “What do your Instincts say?”

She smiled a little at him, and turned to Aladdin.

“Close your eyes,” Rose said. Aladdin did, and Rose shot a beam of light at the valley below. She and the Doctor watched as the particles began to twist and turn, swirling around in a circle, and then molding together, until it formed a hole in the ground that went down for what looked like miles. “Should have been a tiger.”

The Doctor kissed her temple and laughed lightly, amazed by her wit when he knows they’re emotionally distracted from all of it, and his lips peppered three more kisses, savoring her sweet honey scent for a moment longer. He felt her ease into his body at the sensation. Unspoken words lingered in the air above them, and Aladdin opened his eyes and gawked at them. Rose grabbed the Doctor’s hand and they ran down the bottom of the hill, and Aladdin followed, asking questions about what just happened, which they both ignored.

There was a set of stairs made of sand that led then straight down, and the Doctor and Rose began to move quickly, scanning each step to make sure it was safe. Aladdin stayed up above, and the Doctor stopped to look back at him. “You’re not coming?”

“She said I can’t,” he whispered. Rose shook her head. Even with their blocks up, she knew they were thinking the same thing.

“She said you couldn’t find him. She never said you couldn’t get in once we did,” Rose said.

Aladdin let out a shaky breath and nodded. Rose continued to move first, the Doctor next, and Aladdin piled in after, shaking.

It was a long staircase, and both Rose and the Doctor had their sonic screwdrivers ready to go, aimed in front of them. Aladdin kept his eyes straight ahead, peeled for his wife, and the Doctor pulled Rose back just before the last step.

“Wait,” he whispered, and she looked at him.

“What?” she asked, and he just nodded at the floor.

It was a booby trap.

They could see letters on the tiles, and Rose deducted quickly, trying to figure out the best way around it.

“We don’t have time to solve the puzzle, we’ll have to deactivate it,” the Doctor murmured. She bit her lip and looked up. There were spears ready to fall above their heads, and Rose nibbled on her bottom lip, chewing some of the skin off. “Think with me?” he whispered, and she let out a breath of relief that he was coming back to her, and squeezed his hand. They both calculated, taking in all the information they could around the room, and Rose scanned the tile in front of her. It was just...ceramic.

He nudged his mind to hers, and she caught his eye as she let him in.

_I missed you in here._

_I’m sorry, Rose. I…_

_I know. It’s okay. We’ll talk later._

He just stared at her, and Rose saw it in his eyes, that this was a moment where he was remembering they had forever and it was overwhelming him. She squeezed his hand.

_What happens if we press every tile at once? Would it confuse it?_

_No, it would probably set off whatever attack is in place..._

Rose scanned more tiles with her screwdriver, and he watched her, knowing her Instincts might be better at this right now. Her eyes were following every letter, trailing each tile, deducting.

_I think...I think I can solve it, actually...We’re supposed to spell something…_ He looked at her and sighed, a faint smile tugging at his cheeks.

_You’re going to make a wild guess, aren’t you?_

She smiled sheepishly at him and kissed his hand. He felt a small amount of panic begin to rise in him and he clenched his jaw, but he trusted her. Instincts. He was just incredibly uninterested in watching her regenerate this soon, and he was still...well...

She kissed him, hearing his thoughts, and her lips were soft and slightly more charged than they should be with Aladdin right there, and it caused him to moan. When she pulled away she was smiling at him. “Catch me if I fall?”

“Always,” he whispered and winked, but he still found himself holding his breath as she walked onto a tile.

Nothing happened.

She let out a sigh and looked back at him.

“Okay, Just...take it slow, Rose. What’s the letter?” he asked her, and she looked down.

“E,” she said. She stared at the other tiles and jumped, letting out another breath when nothing happened. “X.”

She jumped a third time, and screamed when a spear fell down behind her. “ROSE!”

She turned back, her eyes locking with the Doctor’s and he shook his head. “Sorry.”

“Let’s just deactivate it, come back,” he said. She just shook her head.

“Just one more?” she asked, and he sighed. He knew better than to argue.

“I want that body back in one piece, you got that?” he said, and she smiled.

“Yes, sir.”

She jumped again, and nothing happened. “Next one is ‘T.”

“Why aren’t we following her?” Aladdin asked. The Doctor looked at him.

“I just want to see…” he said, but he trailed off when she found the next letter.

“E, again,” she said, and her stomach started to twist. She swallowed, and the Doctor watched carefully. Another spear fell, this time much closer to her and he clenched his jaw, and Aladdin grabbed his arm.

“Does she know what she’s doing?” he asked. The Doctor just watched.

_Rose. Come back now._

_Just...I have a feeling._

His hearts were pounding and she tested her theory. “Next one is ‘R’” she whispered.

It hit both of them at the same time, and they both knew the rest of the letters. The Doctor watched as she hopped through the rest of the tiles, successfully making it to the end without triggering a spear just to make sure, and their eyes locked from across the pathway.

**EXTERMINATE.**

“Stay here,” the Doctor said to Aladdin, but he shook his head.

“What? You said -” he protested, and the Doctor turned to him, an intense warning in his eyes.

“You can’t come,” he said. “The Oracle was right. This may just be worse than we thought. So stay here and don’t argue.”

Rose sighed at the level of testosterone that was swimming between them, and she just started to scan the walls, figuring she might as well get a head start of figuring out what the hell was going on while they sorted it out.

They were simply just too similar, and Aladdin glared at him. “I came all this way. I’m not giving up on her now. What if it was Rose?”

“It’s not,” the Doctor said, not playing that game. “We will bring her to you. Just stay.”

“I’m not a dog!” Aladdin shouted, and the Doctor groaned.

“Knock it off!” Rose shouted. “Aladdin, trust me. It’ll be better if you stay here. Keep watch up on the sand, okay? We’ll be back soon.” He stared at her and she put her hand on her hips. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” he said, and Rose nodded.

“See you soon, then,” she said, and the Doctor sighed as he quickly followed Rose’s path on the tiles, arriving to meet her on the other side.

Rose grabbed his hand and they looked at each other knowingly as they walked through a sandy path, keeping their eyes and ears peeled for a sight they would rather not see.

They soon realized whatever cave they were in didn’t feel...natural. And there was nothing wonderful about it; there was no water, no stalagmites. It almost felt manufactured, like perhaps it was something from another world that was buried underneath the sand.

The Doctor realized that’s exactly what it was.

A fallen star.

“This is a mothership…” he murmured, his eyes trailing the metal walls that were the walls of the cave. He gripped Rose’s hand. “The Daleks are the Genie.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Rose whispered. “They wouldn’t hide. They would have just killed everything.”

He looked at her, knowing she was right, and he took a deep breath.

She watched him carefully, his brain was taking in everything a little faster than hers, but her Instincts were picking up on the need to move, something he didn’t seem to want to do at the moment. All of their fears about the Oracle were gone, replaced by determination and as they held hands and moved carefully through the corridors. They began to work as the true team they both knew they were, and Rose noticed the archways with bright lights. “It’s like the one from Satellite 5…”

“Yeah,” he said quietly, and he held her hand even tighter, tucking back against a wall again. “It’s too quiet.”

“They may not actually be here…” Rose murmured. “Between the two of us, we have killed them off a handful of times.”

He smirked at her, and a small smile crept onto her face. He found himself smiling a little too, and he kissed her briefly. “Defender of the Earth.”

Their ears were peeled, but it was deathly still as they moved through more corridors, and Rose eventually stopped. Her eyes were glued to a symbol of an hour glass on a door, and she moved to it, scanning.

The door opened, and all the lights were off. She let the Doctor go in first, his sonic screwdriver aimed in front of him and Rose tucked up against his body as she followed. Neither felt nervous, they had dealt with Daleks often enough, but they felt...something.

“Who are you?” a voice whispered. Rose turned to it immediately.

“I’m Rose,” she said, moving to the voice immediately. “We’re here to find Yasminda.”

“She’s not in here,” another voice said, and this time the Doctor turned to it. “He keeps her with him.”

“The Genie?” the Doctor asked. The voice mumbled something that sounded like a yes and Rose took a deep breath.

“Are there any lights?” she whispered.

“No,” the same voice she was talking to before said. “How did you get in? You should leave. If he finds you he’ll take you and keep you with us.”

“No he won’t,” the Doctor said. He looked around the room and aimed his sonic at the ceiling, and a small amount of light trickled in from a broken lamp. It was gold, and he shook his head a little when he saw it was lighting the spot Rose was standing in, as if all gold light was drawn to her, and he moved next to her. “What’s your name?”

“Sera,” the woman said, and Rose and the Doctor began to look around quickly. They were in a prisoner holding cell, similar to where Rose was held when he came to get her all those years ago, and the Doctor clenched his jaw when he saw about twelve other people trapped inside metal cages.

“What’s happening here?” the Doctor asked. Sera sighed.

“I don’t know how to describe it,” she admitted. The man who spoke to the Doctor before scoffed.

“He’s going to kill off the entire planet eventually, mark my words,” he said. Rose turned and stared at him.

“What do you mean?” she asked. He sighed.

“He’s doing something. We’re all part of it. It’s a never ending cycle,” he muttered.

“Aladdin said she made him promise not to hurt the planet…” Rose said, looking at the Doctor. He sniffed and looked back at the man.

“Have you heard the word ‘exterminate’ while you’ve been here?” he asked.

“No,” the man said, his face puzzled. The Doctor took a breath and looked back at Rose.

_That doesn't make sense._.

_I know._

“Where is he?” he asked Sera, but she just shook her head.

“You’ll want to leave while you can,” she protested, and Rose slipped her hand into her cell.

“Look at me,” she said, and Sera just stared at her. “We’re here to stop him. Aladdin told us about everything you’ve all been through, we want to save Yasminda and now we want to save you, too.”

“Aladdin is alive?” Sera asked, Rose just furrowed her brow.

“Yes. You didn’t know that?” she asked. Sera shook her head.

“We need to know where the Genie is,” the Doctor said. “Is he here?”

“Yes,” the man said, and the other dozen prisoners were trembling around them. “Somewhere.”

Rose and the Doctor looked at each other, and they nodded, thinking the same thing at the same time.

_Get them out of here._

_Will do. Distract him, yeah?_

_Will do. I’m rather good at rambling._

He grinned at her and she laughed a little, and he kissed her fiercely. When they pulled apart they didn’t speak, their minds connected and focused, and he ran out of the room.

“Where’s he going?” Sera asked. Rose let out a breath.

“Buying us some time. You ready?” she asked.

“For what? Who are you?” Sera said, and she gasped as Rose broke open her cell with her sonic screwdriver. She climbed out, and Rose ran around the entire room until everyone was free, and they gathered around her in the middle of the room.

“Listen to me carefully, okay? My husband and I are...detectives, sort of, and we’re very, very good at rescue missions. So just stay quiet and close to me and do exactly as I say. I’m going to get you out of here,” she said.

“What?!” the man said. “No, no, no. If we try to escape he kills you instantly. People have tried.”

She just looked at him, and took a deep breath. She shot a beam of light at the wall, creating a small burn hole, and she turned to him calmly as everyone gawked at her. “Think that might stop him?”

The man just stared and everyone began to hug each other. Rose shushed them.

“Celebrate later, follow me now, yeah?” she whispered, and she grabbed Sera’s hand as everyone followed along silently. They walked back into the hallway, and she slithered through the corridors. She had them stand back as she checked around corners, but somehow the halls were still empty.

It gave her an uneasy feeling.

They were a corridor away from exiting the ship and walking back down that sandy path toward the tile, when she stopped.

A Dalek was in their way.

“Figured you might show up,” she said. “Everyone get back.”

They all ran, ducking behind a wall as Rose and the Dalek stared at each other.

“WHO ARE YOU?”

“Rose Tyler,” she said. The Dalek moved toward her and she stared at, a smile peeling onto her face. “You don’t know me, do you?”

“I KNOW YOU ARE INTRUDING.”

“Yeah, and what are you going to do?” she asked. She could feel the Doctor tuning into the conversation in her head, and he sent her a wave of love.

“EXTER-”

Rose shot a beam at the Dalek before it could finish the word, exploding it just like she did Caan on that day with Donna and Harriet. She sighed, and the Doctor smiled in her head.

_You alright?_

_I’m fine. Where are you?_

_I think I found him, wish me luck._

_Be careful._

A new wave of love wrapped itself around both of them, the way it often did on their adventures, and for a moment she forgot just how high the stakes were and closed her eyes. When she opened them, she saw that the prisoners were slowly starting to emerge from behind the wall, and she gestured for them to follow.

No one spoke, and the sandy path felt longer somehow as they tried to reach the tile. When they got there, Aladdin was still waiting on the other side and he perked up.

“Rose! Did you find her?!” he called.

“Not yet, but we will,” she assured him. She saw his face fall and she looked back at the prisoners.

“Step exactly where I do. Follow each other one at a time, yeah?” she told them, and they nodded.

It felt far too simple, she thought, as she watched the prisoners all cross the tile. Her stomach was twisting, trying to figure out what else was going on, but she was grateful when the final prisoner stepped off the tile, and she turned to Aladdin. “You want to be a hero?”

“I just want my wife, Rose,” he said. She sighed.

“We’re working on it. Help them out of here,” she said softly. “Al, the Doctor isn’t with me. It’s because he’s looking for her. Please, help us save as many as possible today.”

He swallowed hard and nodded, and looked up at the stairs. “What’s in there?”

“We’re not sure,” Rose said. “But it’s not good.”

He just clenched his jaw and Sera smiled when she saw Aladdin, telling him how she thought he was killed when Yasminda surrendered. He just hugged her, and Rose watched as he led everyone back up the stairs to safety.

_Rose, stay there._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter for this first story after all! Thank you for reading!


	6. The Genie

The Doctor made his way through a corridor, past archways with flickering lights and orbs that weren’t as bright as he knew they should be. The ship wasn’t functional, and it was possibly dying. He had been on enough of these damn things to tell, and he could hear Rose in his head, strong and brave, convincing the prisoners to let her help in the way he knew only she could. 

His Woman of Time. 

He took a deep breath as he approached the end of the ship, and he heard something above his head. His sonic screwdriver was scanning again, his blue suit was reflecting the dull light that was all around him, and his brow was furrowed. 

Rose would scold him if she was here, he was sure, but he licked the side of the ship. 

“Oil...” he murmured, making a face and trying to wipe the taste out of his mouth as his tongue moved in and out in disgust. He saw it leaking from a crease in the ceiling and his eyes followed it down, realizing there was a hidden door in front of him. He clenched his jaw as he scanned it, and it revealed another passageway. He sighed, finding it all rather unoriginal that he was once again walking through a hidden path to danger, but he inched forward and carefully moved up to the next level of the ship.

Rose was taking the prisoners out of the room, and he knew she was being as careful as possible. The orbs were completely dark on this level, and he immediately took in all the fallen metal beams and broken windows. This area must have taken the brunt of the landing when they crashed on the surface, and he pushed some glass to the side, deducting. 

He saw hundreds of dead Daleks sprawled on the floor in front of him, and he approached one carefully. Nothing about it was adding up in his head, and he broke one open, its metal weaker than usual and looked into its heart, which was shriveled and now smelled of a putrid oil. 

His nose crinkled at the stench and he tried not to gag realizing he most likely licked dead Dalek blood off the wall, and he continued to walk. They had been here for a while, and he had a sinking feeling they might be a ship that crashed during the Time War, but he was choosing to push that aside for now. 

“Genie?” he called, looking around carefully. “Are you there?” 

It was silent as he moved out of the room, and he froze, just for a moment, when he heard a Dalek in his head, talking to Rose. 

He smiled as she stopped it before it could get to her or any of the prisoners, and a shadow caught his eye. 

_You alright?_

_I’m fine. Where are you?_

The shadow moved again, and he stiffened. 

_I think I found him. Wish me luck._

_Be careful._

He sent her a wave of love just as she sent him one, and he moved forward, his sonic screwdriver in front of him. 

The shadow darted out of the room before he could see it clearly, and he stayed quiet, following where it went with his eyes. He almost tripped over one of the fallen Daleks and he pushed it to the side, the smell of the putrid oil stronger in the part of the ship he was in now and he started to cough, covering his nose with the crook of his arm. 

“Genie?” he said again. The shadow flitted away, and he felt himself growing incredibly frustrated. 

He slipped through another door and found himself in the main control room, which was also a little beat up and non-functional, but it was in better shape than the room he was just in. 

Three Daleks, very much alive, sat against the wall and all turned their attention to him when he stood in the archway. He could hear Rose and Aladdin talking but he tuned it out, just as Yasminda locked eyes with him. 

Davros stood beside her. 

He froze. 

_Rose, stay there._

“Doctor…” Davros said, and the Doctor just looked at him. 

“You’re the Genie?” he asked. Davros smiled and began to wheel toward him, his bottom half still very much a Dalek as Yasminda just watched. 

“That’s the hello I get after all this time?” he asked. “You have changed your face.” 

“You ever considered doing that?” the Doctor asked, and Yasminda’s eyes widened. 

“How did you find me?” Davros asked instead, and the Doctor just smirked. 

“I’m gonna go with...destiny,” he said. Davros snarled at him and wheeled back toward Yasminda. 

“Since when do you believe in that?” he asked, and the Doctor didn’t say anything. “It’s been...such a long time, Doctor.” 

“It has. How’d you survive the war?” he asked. Davros wheeled around the room slowly, ignoring him. 

“Such a long time. And yet you look so young. Trying to compensate, perhaps? To look like a man who has done no harm?” he said. The Doctor just watched, his words not affecting him at all. “How does it feel, Doctor? To know you caused so much destruction?” 

“Oh, no, no, no. We’re not doing that,” the Doctor said. “I would press that button a thousand times if it meant stopping you.” 

“But you didn’t stop me, did you?” Davros said. “I am here.” 

The Doctor stiffened for a moment when he felt Rose in his head, and he knew she was on her way. 

_Rose, please. Stay there._

_We’re not having this argument again. Where the hell are you?_

He sighed, and he sent her the path he took to get here. He almost said more, but he could feel her irritation with him and he knew he was making decisions for her again. She really didn’t like it when he did that. 

He had to remember that they had forever. 

Davros just watched him. 

“Why are you hiding?” the Doctor asked, the pulse of Rose’s heartbeat in his ring faster than it was before. She was running. “You could be sending Daleks into the city, terrorizing and killing like they always do. But you’re here...why?” 

“He’s dying,” Yasminda said. The Doctor’s eyes snapped to her, and Davros wheeled around to face her. 

“My dear, please,” he said. The Doctor’s eyes narrowed, and he saw the plea in Yasminda’s eyes. He swallowed. 

“What are you doing with her?” he asked darkly, and Davros turned to him, wheeling over slowly once again. 

“She is mine to with as I please,” Davros said, and a fury boiled in the Doctor. 

“No, she’s not,” he said. He stared at Davros, who just shook his head. 

“Always so angry,” he said. 

“You give me a reason to be,” the Doctor said, and he looked him up and down. “So you’re dying...What’s your plan?” 

“Does it matter? You will not stop me this time,” Davros said. 

“Oh, well, if you say so it must be true,” the Doctor said bitterly, and he looked over at the Daleks. “Your army is small.” 

“Rebuilding is...delayed,” Davros sneered. 

“HA! Is it?!” the Doctor exclaimed, unable not to laugh at that comment, even though his hearts were beating against his chest. He was trying to ignore the alarm bells that told him he didn’t do as good of a job stopping the Time War as he thought, and that it was all done in vain. 

First Rassilon, and now this…

He knew those thoughts were the devil on his shoulder berating him as always, and if he wasn’t careful he would find himself in a full blown panic attack. The type of panic that usually drowned out all sense of reason, leaving Rose to pick up the pieces. Neither of them had time for that right now, and he sniffed, looking at the three Daleks carefully. 

Whatever Davros was planning was not going well. And that was a good thing. 

“What’s your plan, Davros? You’re trying to turn the people on the planet into Daleks?” the Doctor asked. “It’s not working?” 

“I don’t need to tell my plan to you, Doctor,” Davros said. “I just need to get rid of you.” 

“Ohhhhh, please. If you were going to do that you would have done it by now,” the Doctor said, and Yasminda watched Davros as he wheeled his way back to her. 

“My dear, do it,” he whispered. 

She looked at the Doctor slowly, an apology in her eyes, and she looked at the Daleks. “Exterminate.” 

“EXTERMINATE!” one called, and the Doctor rolled out of the way as it fired, hitting the back wall of the control room. “EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!” 

The Doctor kept dodging the attacks, much to Davros’ frustration, and he slid under the panel just as the Dalek that was attacking him exploded. He looked up and saw Rose standing in the archway between the broken pieces, flames framing her face. 

Davros began to yell, but she took out the other two Daleks wordlessly, and he was livid. 

“WHO ARE YOU?” Davros shouted, and Rose’s tongue found the corner of her mouth, staring at him. 

“The Doctor’s wife,” she said. He grinned at her, his hearts skipping a beat. She had never introduced herself that way, and there was something about her doing it in _this_ moment under _these_ circumstances that made him want to throw her against the wall and ravish her immediately. He didn’t care that it was on a Dalek mothership. Not in that moment. 

She shot him a saucy smile, and he realized she had heard him. 

His impossible human. 

Davros wheeled to her in anger, and the Doctor slipped out from under the controls and ran to Yasminda, fully reminded that Rose could handle herself. 

“Come with me,” he said, and she just stared at him as he pulled her away from Davros and behind Rose. He moved to stand next to his wife, and slipped his hand into hers. 

Davros stared at them, and suddenly he was coughing. 

The Doctor watched him carefully, and Rose’s instincts were waking up. “Doctor, who is this?” 

“Oh! Right, sorry. Rose, meet Davros,” he told her. “The creator of the Daleks.” 

“Oh, you must be terrified of us, then,” Rose said staring at him, and the Doctor bit his cheek. 

How he adored this woman. 

They looked at each other, hazel galaxies swimming in chocolate, and Davros frowned. 

“Such...intimacy, so unlike the Doctor I knew,” Davros said. They were sure he meant it as an insult, but he started coughing again. Rose bit her lip. 

“What’s wrong with you?” she said.

He was coughing more, and the Doctor put the pieces together. 

“The ship is dying, and so are you. You can’t leave...Your life depends on it. This isn’t about revenge, it's about self preservation. It’s not about dominance, at least not yet….It’s selfish. You recreate the Daleks, somehow they must, what, fix up your ship and save your life?” he said, and Davros looked at him. Rose noticed his blue eye, realizing that must be what Aladdin meant…

She preferred the cartoon. 

The Doctor squeezed her hand, and Davros’ breath was labored when he spoke next. 

“You think you’re so clever,” he said. Rose stared at him. 

“We do actually, yeah,” Rose said, and Davros moved over to her. 

“His arrogance is rubbing off on you, my dear,” he said.

“Funny, I was going to say the same about you,” she said. The Doctor looked at her, and she was staring at him with a stone expression. “You deserve this.” 

“You don’t know me,” he snapped, and the Doctor’s eyes traced her face as she spoke. 

“Yeah, but I know the Daleks. Seems fitting the Captain should go down with their ship,” she said coldly. The Doctor looked at Davros and sighed. Yasminda was crying, and Rose turned to her. “Are you alright?” 

She just shook her head, and Rose wrapped her in a hug. The Doctor felt his Adam’s apple bob again and he looked at Davros, who was struggling to breathe. 

“Are there more?” the Doctor asked. 

“More what?” Davros said. 

“Prisoners,” he replied. Rose shook her head, and he realized she had already checked. He clenched his jaw and stared at Davros again. Yasminda was in a full blown sob of relief and Rose was holding her tightly, letting her stain her red jumper with her tears, and she was rubbing her back. The Doctor clenched his jaw. 

_Can you hit the coral?_

Rose’s eyes met his, knowing that severing the heart of the ship meant he was asking her to kill the man in the Dalek chair, and she nodded. 

Their eyes danced for a moment, and he kissed her before he wrapped his arm around Yasminda and began to murmur words of reassurance, telling her Aladdin sent them and their kids were waiting for her and she was safe, and he would take her to them. She was crying harder and he led her out of the room, catching one final glance with Rose before he turned the corner, keeping his mind open so he knew she was okay. 

Davros stared at her. 

“What did you do to her?” she asked. Davros wheezed. 

“She was my...prodigy,” he said. “She was helping... me... know what the planet could offer me…..In return….I would spare... her children….” Rose swallowed hard, and Davros started to laugh. “You know...he’s tried to kill me ...many times? I will return,” he said, wheezing harder. Rose’s face was cold. 

“I haven’t tried yet,” she said. “I killed off your entire Dalek race once.” 

“So did he. And yet….they return, don’t they?” he said, coughing harder than ever before. He looked back at her, and her eyes were watching him carefully. He noticed, and grimaced. “Oh, don’t tell me you pity me?” 

“Someone must have, once,” she said. 

_Rose, get out of there. You can’t help him._

She ignored him, eyeing Davros carefully. 

“You think he’s a hero,” Davros said, “But he’s not.” 

Rose just shook her head, “You’re right. He’s so much more.” 

She aimed her light at the coral of the panel, and Davros screamed as it caught fire. She watched him sadly just for a moment, before she turned around and ran through the hall, past the dead Daleks, ignoring the putrid smell, and out the hidden door. 

The Doctor was comforting Yasminda at the end of the corridor by the room they found all the prisoners in, and she ran to them. 

She threw herself into his arms, and he held her tightly as Yasminda tried to reign in her tears. His eyes were closed, and she pressed her forehead into his shoulder and they held onto each other for a lingering second, and she pulled back. 

“Are you alright?” he asked her, his eyes scanning her face. She just nodded. 

“Yeah. Are you?” 

He nodded and kissed her forehead, and they both turned to Yasminda. “Come on, he’s waiting.” 

She stared at them, and they could see she was too overcome to even begin to process anything that was going on for a moment. The Doctor scanned her as they moved, and was relieved when it was clear she didn’t have any physical injuries and Davros hadn’t harmed her in that way, and he let go of Rose so she could help support Yasminda as they trekked through the corridors and pathways. 

He kept an eye out for Daleks, but none came. 

His mind was swimming in thoughts as they approached the tile, and Yasminda collapsed to the ground when she saw the stairs. Rose knelt down next to her, and she cupped her hands around her cheeks. 

“Who are you?” she sobbed, and Rose smiled at her. 

“We’re friends,” she said. “I promise.” 

Yasminda’s breath was shaky as Rose helped her stand back up. She told her to follow her step by step, and they moved back across the tile. The Doctor followed, and they all headed up the sand stairs until they reached the desert, where all the prisoners and Aladdin were sitting in the sand, waiting. 

The blue and purple swirls were appearing in the sky as the sun was rising, and Rose and the Doctor met Aladdin’s eye. He stood instantly, and they stepped aside, where Yasminda stopped walking and stared at him. 

Rose gripped the Doctor’s hand as they watched both of them run to each other and latch on for dear life. Aladdin gripped her, tears cascading down his cheeks, and the Doctor looked down at his feet and let out a shaky breath, his own mind remembering the crash of waves and a slightly singed TARDIS and the smell of the sea as Rose held him in the same way. 

He had burned up a sun. 

She placed her head on his shoulder, her mind thinking about that day with an equal force, and he pressed his lips to her hair. 

He wasn’t sad. He was so, unbelievably and inconsequentially grateful. 

The fixed point that gave them forever. 

“I love you,” she said, and he nodded as he kissed her hair again. 

“I love you so much,” he whispered. Their eyes locked, and he kissed her. Soft. Slow. Warm. Gentle. 

She hummed a little as they pulled apart, and they found themselves flooded with hope again. Hope for their future, for their family, for the universe.

The Oracle’s words no longer weighed them down. Not right now. 

He smiled at her, and she pressed her lips to his shoulder as Aladdin and Yasminda held each other close and moved to them. He wrapped them both in a desperate hug, and they smiled and each wrapped an arm around him. 

“I…” he began, and Rose just shook her head. 

“We know,” she said, nodding at him. “The Genie is dead. He won’t be back for you, we promise.”

“You can govern again, if you’d like,” the Doctor added. 

Yasminda just stared at them, her hand gripping Aladdin’s. “I just don’t understand….I don’t know how any of this happened…” 

They smiled at her, and over the next few hours they told her the entire story as they led everyone, including Sera and the other prisoners back toward the small village they stayed in the night before. The Doctor and Rose got everyone food, making sure they were taken care of, and they got rooms for everyone as well, telling them to rest for the long walk back to the city. 

There weren’t enough rooms for everyone to have their own, so Rose and the Doctor shared one with Sera and two other prisoners, whose names they learned were Pox and Mindy. They were all asleep on the bed and Rose and the Doctor were sitting by the window, staring at the sky. 

It was the middle of the day, but everyone’s sleep schedule was...off. 

He brushed his hand along her knee and leaned his head against the wall, pondering. It had been an emotional rollercoaster of a trip, and she found herself tearing her eyes away from the clouds to look at his face, noting the small amount of stubble he had growing from two days of not shaving. She bit her lip and brushed her hand along his cheek. 

“I like you all scruffy,” she teased quietly, and he raised an eyebrow at her. 

“Yeah?” he asked, and she just smiled at him. 

“Yes,” she said. He made a small sound and shifted his chair closer to hers, pulling her against his chest as he looked back at the sky. 

“You should sleep,” he told her, kissing her forehead. She just shook her head. 

“Can’t,” she murmured. 

“Same,” he admitted, and she just took a deep breath. 

“You wanna talk about it?” she whispered, her hand linked in his. He just shook his head. 

“Not here,” he said. “I also think I’m...okay.” 

She pulled away from him and her eyes landed on his cheek again, tracing his expression carefully. His blocks were up, and she didn’t try to push, but she felt her tongue trailing her lips like it does when she’s thinking and she just leaned back onto his chest, and closed her eyes. 

Maybe sleep would be good. 

A few minutes passed and he was rubbing her wedding ring. He surprised her when he kept talking, jolting her out of an almost-sleep. “I’m just thinking about what my father said.” 

She opened her eyes and looked up at him. “About our kids?” 

He nodded, and she knew he was looking at the spot Gallifrey once sat again. “And what the Oracle said. I was scared, Rose.” 

“Me too,” she whispered. “We can still talk about it later, if you want.” 

“Is that what you want?” he murmured, and she shook her head. 

“I want to talk about it now,” she told him, and he let out a small breath. 

“I’m sorry I locked you out of my head,” he whispered. Pox snored loudly and they both looked over at him and smiled. She just shook her head. 

“None of that,” she said, holding his hand. “I knew why.” 

“Still,” he said. He leaned his head against the wall again and looked at her. He saw how tired she was and he ran his thumb under her eye, letting her face collapse in his palm for a moment. “You sure you don’t want to sleep?” She shook her head, and he swallowed. “I want to say I think she’s lying, but she was right about Aladdin, so..well…” 

“She also didn’t say anything...bad,” Rose said, her eyes serious as she looked at him. “I was freaked out too, when she first said it, but...then we saved the universe. It hit me, on the walk over here that all she told us was that they’ll howl and we need to be prepared. Who knows the hell that means. I apparently howl, and it’s not a bad thing, is it?” 

“No,” the Doctor said instantly, his hearts dropping to his stomach. “Of course not.” 

“Right,” Rose said. “They’ll be _our_ kids, Doctor. A few...unexpected things are to be expected.” 

She was smiling a little at him, and he felt his throat tighten. “Some impossible things?” 

“Maybe,” she said, her face breaking out into a full smile. He beamed at her and looked down at his feet, letting out a small laugh. She noticed she was blushing, and she could swear he was too. 

“I like impossible things,” he whispered, and when he looked back up at her, a single tear had spilled over that he quickly wiped away. She kissed him, and he held the back of her head with his hand. 

“I don’t think we’ll know about any of it, Doctor, what the Oracle said or what your father said, until we know,” she murmured. He sighed. 

“I can try to search the timelines,” he told her seriously. “We both can. See what we find.” 

She wasn’t Time Lady, but...she basically was. 

“If that will make you feel better,” she said seriously. “Or we can just...let go, a little. I think they’re going to be fantastic.” 

He stared at her in amazement, and he couldn’t even try to swallow the lump in his throat this time. “Are you saying…” 

He cleared his throat, and she smiled at him. “Not yet. But...I’m getting closer.” 

He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her and he closed his eyes. They stayed there for a moment, and she moved to wrap herself in his arms with her back against his chest, and she smiled. “Thank you for taking me to Barcelona.” 

“You didn’t really get to see it, to be fair,” he muttered, and she just sighed, closing her eyes. 

“One day, then,” she said, yawning a little. “Maybe when I’m five hundred.” 

“Deal,” he said, smiling at her. She nuzzled her head against him and took a deep breath, letting herself drift off for a while, knowing they still had to walk all the way back to the TARDIS and drop everyone off in the city before they could get there. 

He watched her sleep, his head still leaning against the wall, and he rubbed her name in Gallifreyan on her arm, until he allowed himself to sleep for a while, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally outlined at 10k words, oops! Turns out there will 7 chapters. I just kinda had to end this one here. :) Next one maybe a little shorter, just tying up some loose ends!


	7. Husbands and Wives

The walk back took place that night, after they made sure everyone had more food and water and plenty of rest, and Rose’s Instincts helped her avoid the glassy sandstorms, which meant the walk took a little longer, but all of them were talking, and it helped pass the time. 

It was the largest group the Doctor and Rose can remember ever travelling with. 

It was a little difficult, in fact, to make sure they weren’t losing anyone to exhaustion or pace. Rose kept glancing over at Yasminda and Aladdin, who were still clinging to each other, but she could tell Yasminda was going through some emotional trauma, and Aladdin was doing his best. She knew a thing or two about that herself and she moved over to her, smiling a little. 

“You alright?” she asked softly, and Yasminda just nodded. 

“Thank you,” she said. “You and your husband. For all that you did.” 

“It was our pleasure,” Rose told her, and she looked at Aladdin. He wasn’t going to leave her side, she could tell, and she just walked beside Yasminda and stared at the stars. “It’s okay not to be okay, you know.” 

She felt the woman stiffen beside her, and she just shook her head. “I’m fine.” 

“I know,” Rose said. “Just...if you weren’t. That would be okay, too.” 

She didn’t say anything, and Rose just squeezed her hand and flashed her an infectious smile, which Yasminda couldn’t help but reciprocate. “Do you know what you’ll do when you get back?” 

“I just want to hold my kids,” Yasminda said. “I’ll worry about the rest later.” 

Rose just looked at her, and she saw Sera and the Doctor talking up ahead. She looked around, still making sure everyone was accounted for, and before they knew it hours had gone by and the city was in sight. 

Rose quickly realized they couldn’t just leave, and she and the Doctor decided to stay for the rest of the week to help ease Yasminda back. 

They watched her hug her children, and it made everyone cry. 

On the second day, they helped Aladdin remove the officers that were surprisingly more than grateful not to have to report to Davros anymore, and the city celebrated. Rose was able to watch some fireworks that normally get used for parades, and the Doctor smiled madly at her. 

On the third day, they used their sonic screwdrivers to open the gates around the governor’s mansion, which had sat untouched and collecting dust all this time. Rose and the Doctor told Aladdin they’d help them clean it up and make sure they could settle in alright. 

The city was overjoyed to have Yasminda back, and she was often stopped in the street and hugged by everyone. Rose kept a careful watch on her, often squeezing her hand when she could tell it was too much, or helping her slip away and cry when she needed to. 

The Doctor was entirely unsurprised and entirely overwhelmed by Rose’s compassion, and each time he saw it he was once again reminded just how very in love with her he was. On the fourth day, which they were fairly certain would be their last, he found himself glancing back at her, watching her and Yasminda take a breather in the gardens behind the mansion, and Aladdin just sighed. 

“What?” the Doctor asked, and he just shook his head. 

“Nightmares,” he murmured. “I keep having them. And then I see her and she’s here, in the garden with your wife, and…” 

“They don’t go away, I’m sorry to say,” the Doctor told him. Aladdin just frowned. 

“I didn’t expect them, too,” he said. They both worked in silence, and Aladdin let out a breath. “How long ago was it for you?” 

The Doctor was helping Aladdin move some furniture around and he clenched his jaw, scanning a lamp to make sure it still worked for them. They could hear Daphne and Cassis playing upstairs, and he just shook his head. “Three years.” 

“You still have nightmares?” he asked. The Doctor nodded. 

“Not as often, I suppose, and I can shake them off much faster now, almost instantly, but...well..” he said, glancing back at Rose. She was talking excitedly and had her hand on Yasminda’s shoulder, and he just shook his head. “I’d rather have a nightmare I can wake up from.” 

“Yeah,” Aladdin said, collapsing into the seat. The Doctor sat across from him, and Aladdin held out his hand. The Doctor shook it. “I truly don’t know how to thank you. Either of you. I just...I thought we were destined to be apart forever.” 

“Stop. You’ve said that too many times. You don’t need to thank us,” he said. 

His past incarnations would surely roll their eyes hearing him speak this way now, but he didn’t care. Aladdin just leaned his head back into the couch and sighed, and they both perked up when their wives walked back into the room and beside them. 

They chatted and laughed, and Yasminda repeated her husband’s words, telling them for the hundredth time she didn’t know how to thank them. Rose recapped what he had said, and he wrapped his arms around her, letting the weight of the last few days go as they talked some more, and Daphne and Cassis ran down with new toys, crawling into their parent’s laps. 

They made their way to the TARDIS as the sky was swirling back to the stars, and they took one final look at Aladdin and Yasminda, who had walked with them. “Will we see you again?” Aladdin asked as the Doctor popped open the door to the ship, and they turned to him. 

“If we’re lucky,” Rose replied, and he grinned at her. “We can’t wait to attend one of your parties.” 

They smiled at her, and the Doctor waved as he slipped inside. Rose was about to follow, when she felt a tug on her arm. It was Yasminda, who pulled her into one final hug. “Take care, okay?” 

“You too,” she said, and they both just nodded, before Rose walked onboard the ship and closed the door. 

She stared at the Doctor, who had thrown his suit coat onto the console and was sitting in the pilot’s seat. 

“Well…” he said, and they both started laughing. She moved to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek. 

“Villa or Mum’s?” she asked, and he smiled at her. 

“Villa, I think, just for a couple of days,” he said. He watched her, clicking his teeth against his jaw as she moved to the controls and piloted the TARDIS all on her own again, leaning back against the rim as they felt the gentle spin of time beneath their feet. 

She smiled at him, and he reached for her hand, pulling her to him. She brushed his hair back with her hand, and tilted her head as she looked at him. “Jets.” 

“What?” he asked, laughing. 

“The bathtub at the villa, it needs jets,” she said. “I have plans for us.”  


“Do you?” he said, smiling seductively at her. She just winked as the spin of time halted, and he felt a pulse in his groin as she grabbed his hand and moved him to the door. 

“Do you want to...I dunno...find out more?” she whispered, pressing her lips to his ear against the door. Before he could answer, she smiled wolfishly at him and pushed it open, where they moved through an entirely new type of sand up to their home, and Rose Tyler got creative in more ways than one, leaving the Doctor speechless. 

Forever, he was reminded, had an entirely new meaning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next one will be out soon!


End file.
